Sideline: Another Story
by WaterDragonMaverick
Summary: Remnant is a big place with many stories. And there are more teams than just RWBY and JNPR. A farm girl from a town in Anima goes to Vale so that she can attend her Huntsman father's school, Beacon Academy. Join Azalea as she makes new friends, fights Grimm, and grows as a Huntress. However, there are more threats to Remnant than Salem and Cinder as well. Cover by Evebun on Tumblr.
1. Azalea's Arrival

**Hello, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here with a new RWBY story! I've actually been coming up with a few RWBY Original Characters and you can see their profiles on my Tumblr blog, sullivantwissarcana, if you want to know about who I have written down so far.**

 **I wanted to make my own story for RWBY that takes place during the first few Volumes and even during the weeks and months between them (like how the Grimm Eclipse game is supposed to take place between Volumes 2 and 3). There will be a couple of original villains as well, so this new set of heroes will have their own adventures while Team RWBY has theirs with Cinder and Torchwick. I even plan on adding in Grimm ideas, so there's going to be some pretty cool enemies to fight.**

 **Alright! Be prepared for the story and if you have any helpful ideas or advice, be sure to say something.**

 **OPEN THE GAME!**

 **I do not own RWBY. It is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum. R.I.P**

 **The only things I do own are my Original Characters for this story.**

* * *

It was morning at Vale's skyport and it was crowded with people that were ready to attend Beacon Academy for their first year at the Huntsman Academy. Several teenagers were excitedly chatting with each other or looking over their belongings as they boarded the airship. However, there was one girl that was hesitantly getting on the vehicle as she rubbed her arm and cautiously looked around.

She was 17 years old like most of the others on the ship, was 5'7" tall, and had healthy tanned skin from working outside constantly at home. She had vibrant green eyes, three freckles on each cheek, and reddish-brown hair that reached her chest. The girl had a curvaceous and toned hourglass figure that she hid with a baggy green sweater, blue jeans, and work boots. Underneath her sweater, she also wore a flannel shirt and white tank top. She also wore a black choker around her neck and bandana on her head in a way that covered the top of her hair, but let her bangs fall naturally over her forehead. Her name was Azalea Calla Holstein, and she was nervously awaiting the ship to leave for Beacon.

Finding a seat away from most of the other teenagers aboard, Azalea set her bags aside and sighed heavily. It was a major development for her to go to Beacon like her father did, but she was nervous because of multiple reasons. First, she had never left the continent of Anima before and making the journey west to Sanus had given her some feelings of homesickness. Second, Azalea had a few issues with other kids her age while growing up. When she hit puberty, her figure developed rather quickly and the other students in her combat classes were always taunting her or calling her mean nicknames. And third, Beacon Academy was her father's choice of school when he became a Huntsman, so she wanted to make him proud and do well in her training.

Looking around at the moving airship, Azalea saw a few faces that stood out to her. A blue-haired girl reading a book, a wolf Faunus checking his weapon, and even a boy that looked like he was previously trekking through the desert territories of Vacuo. But, a few more faces seemed to scare Azalea into shifting around in her seat. A tall girl with glasses and two different colored eyes looked at her Scroll, a smaller girl with a skull hair clip that seemed to be scowling at the window, and a girl in a leather jacket with fiery red hair that had gold highlights who seemed to be investigating the cabin and everyone in it.

Too busy looking at the three tough-looking girls, Azalea didn't notice somebody sit next to her until she felt a bag lean against her leg. Turning around to her right, she saw a girl measuring at 5'5" with neon blue hair nodding her head to music on her white headphones. The new girl wore sunglasses with amethyst-colored lenses, a white jacket with a gold trim, a matching skirt, purple arm warmers that resembled fingerless gloves, purple leggings, and a pair of blue sneakers. Her blue hair had her bangs styled so that they fell near her right eye and as she moved to the beat of her tunes, Azalea saw that her headphones and skirt had an emblem of a record with three scratches across it.

The blue-haired girl saw Azalea and waved hello to the apparent wallflower. Shyly waving back, Azalea got the impression that this girl was either really into her music to not say anything or that she was the quiet type who let actions speak louder than words. Soon, the girl took off her headphones and held them out to Azalea. Cautious about what she was doing, the girl from Anima slowly took the headphones and put them on. After a few seconds of silence, a song began to play and Azalea listened to the lyrics.

"Day and night my mind is running~, Reaching out 'cause I want more~ That I've never had before~," a male singer started the song as a guitar and drums slowly joined in. As the song's tempo sped up, Azalea was getting into the song and the white-clad girl smiled at her. "When I become my own enemy~ I don't understand what you see in me~ 'Cause I'm just another story~ -That's not worth a reading- Now you've got me pinned against a wall~ Why aren't you afraid that I'll take a fall~ There's more that came before me~ Am I worth believing?~ I'm not so sure~," the chorus rang out in Azalea's ears and she started dancing in place to the beat.

After the song ended, Azalea carefully removed the headphones from her head, being careful with the bandana covering her hair, and gave them back to the girl. Soon, she pulled out a Scroll and typed something before showing it to Azalea. Looking at the device, Azalea saw that it was a social media account belonging to the girl in front of her. The profile pic showed the girl with her sunglasses on her forehead to reveal cerise-colored eyes and had her arm around an older boy that looked like her brother. Taking a look at the name underneath the photo, Azalea learned her new acquantince's name was 'Vinyl Aurum'.

"Hello, Vinyl," Azalea shyly said to her. "I'm Azalea. I guess we'll be starting our first year at Beacon together?" Vinyl nodded with a smile and the two turned their heads towards a commotion. It appeared that a blonde girl in a brown jacket was hugging a silver-eyed girl in a gothic dress who apparently was her younger sister that was going to Beacon with them. As their conversation continued, Azalea thought that they looked familiar, but the girls were too far from where she was to immediately confirm her thoughts.

After the girls stopped talking about each other and how the gothic girl was skipping two years in combat school to attend Beacon, a news report showed a mugshot from the Vale Police Department. An orange-haired man named Roman Torchwick was stated to be at large after a robbery earlier in the week. Azalea got a good look at the man and knew that he seemed like trouble because of the smirk he had in his photo.

The news then moved onto the topic of the recent activity of the White Fang and something caught her attention. The wolf Faunus who was fixing up his weapon earlier seemed to be growling at the report. Either he didn't like news about his kind, or the White Fang brought up some unpleasant memories in the kid. Before the woman on the news could continue, the screen turned off and a hologram of a tall blonde woman replaced it. "Hello, and welcome to Beacon! My name is Glynda Goodwitch," the woman greeted the passengers. As she continued speaking about Beacon Academy, Azalea looked out the window to see an aerial view of the city of Vale. It was breathtaking and Vinyl agreed by adjusting her sunglasses to get a clear look at the city.

After a bit of time looking at the sight, Azalea and Vinyl heard something running towards them. A tall blond boy in armor looked like he was going to throw up as he passed the two girls. Getting out of the way, Azalea moved away from Vinyl and the door. However, she also bumped into somebody as she dodged the nauseous boy. "Oh no, I'm sorry," Azalea apologized as she moved back next to Vinyl. As she turned around, Azalea's face filled with dread as she noticed that it was the girl she saw earlier before Vinyl showed up.

The girl in the leather jacket was about Azalea's height and was also wearing a purple halter top, a pair of leggings, a layered skirt with an ammo belt, and a pair of black knee-high boots with flame-like markings. Her long red and gold hair was wavy and reached down to her waist and hips. The edgy looking girl also had light skin and a modest hourglass figure that looked like she kept in great physical shape. Teal eyes looked at Azalea and seemed to judge the poor girl before Vinyl stepped in and spoke up.

"Hey. It was an accident," Vinyl said shortly and clearly.

The tough-looking girl took a deep breath and sighed like she was focusing on something. "It's no problem. They happen," she said. Placing a hand on her hip, the redhead seemed to give off an aura of confidence. But, it also seemed like she was a bit nervous about something as well. "I'm Sunset Blaze. And you two are," the girl introduced herself and inquired.

Collecting herself, Azalea answered the question. "I'm Azalea and that's Vinyl," she said quickly. Honestly, Azalea was a bit more nervous about interacting with Sunset because she looked like a bully with her fashion style.

Seeing the tension between herself and Azalea, Sunset tried to reassure the timid girl's safety. "Relax. I'm not going to hurt you. In fact, my teacher wants me to actually make friends with students my age. Especially since we're going to be assigned teams to work with."

"R-really," Azalea stuttered at the info as Vinyl placed her headphones around her neck.

"Yeah," Sunset began to explain. "Teams of four are set up together based on initiation results. I don't know the full details, but my teacher was a graduate of Beacon herself. So, I'm trusting what she said to me about this."

Azalea was working up a nervous sweat at the idea of being teamed up with three random people she barely knew. But if her father could do it, so could she. The freckled girl just hoped that it wouldn't be too bad. The worst that she thought could happen would be if she was teamed up with somebody who was just like the kids back in her combat classes in Sanctuary Academy in Anima. Eventually, the airship landed and the new first year students exited the vehicle.

As the crowded cabin started to empty, Azalea stayed behind to not get caught up in the sea of people. Looking at her Scroll, she stared at a picture of her hometown, Mirabelle. Sighing and collecting her stuff, Azalea walked out and saw the Beacon Academy grounds. Amazed at the building in front of her, she didn't notice a few lecherous looks she got from a few boys. Taking a quick walk around the campus, Azalea tried to get her bearings around the new environment.

* * *

A few minutes of exploring later, Azalea saw a few upperclassmen hanging out near the school gardens. However, she also saw the look in their eyes when they noticed her. As she walked past them, they cornered her and spoke up. "Hey, freshman. Where are you going," one of the three boys said.

Trying to avoid their gaze, Azalea looked down and crossed her arms to have a feeling of safety. "Come on," another boy said. "We're just asking a question."

"Yeah. It's our job to help the underclassmen get around," the third male said as he kept looking at Azalea like she was a piece of meat.

Looking around for somebody to help, Azalea was feeling anxious to leave the three men behind and head for safety. It was either that or fight them off with her weapon. But, she thought it wouldn't be a good idea for several reasons. Luckily, a large explosion at the front of the school caught the trio's attention.

"What was that!? The hell? Holy-," the three reacted to the sound and turned towards the source. After a few seconds, they just assumed it was somebody that had unstable Dust and caused the explosion by accident. As they went back to Azalea, they were surprised to see nobody was there. Paying no attention to it, the boys headed back to their classes and left the area.

After a minute of isolation and silence, Azalea faded back into view. Taking a deep breath to calm down, she sat down on the walkway and moaned sadly. Using her Semblance allowed her to bend light around herself to become invisible for short periods of time. Azalea always used this to escape from bullies and mean girls back home, but having to use her special power reminded her that things are still the same when it came to her appearance. Thinking back to all the times that she ran back home after escaping ridicule, Azalea slowly remembered that she wasn't back on the farm with her mother and father.

Removing her bandana from her head, Azalea dried her eyes with the cloth. As she did, it revealed two cow horns on the top of her skull. Being alone, Azalea thought that she could let her Faunus trait show without being judged. But, a new voice sounded out as she was wiping her tears away. "You okay," a worried feminine voice asked.

Gasping in shock and covering her head, Azalea saw the girl who spoke to her. She had olive skin, blue eyes, a long purple ponytail, and looked like she was the same height as Vinyl. She wore an outfit that didn't look suitable for combat, but more for an act as a dancing girl or a genie, which would be appropriate with her slender and fit hourglass figure. The girl's 'attire' consisted of a pair of red harem pants, a red bra-like top, black boots, and an unbuttoned purple vest. She also wore several pieces of gold jewelry like bracelets with red gems, a simple pair of earrings, and a gold circlet with a blue gem in the center. "Need some help," she asked as she held out her hand for Azalea.

Seeing the kind look in her eyes and the gentle smile put Azalea at ease, so she took the girl's hand and stood up. After standing, Azalea looked down at her boots and rubbed her arm before speaking to the new girl. "Thanks... I didn't think someone would do that for somebody like me," Azalea said as she placed her bandana back on her head.

"Why's that," the purple-haired girl asked with her head tilted.

"Well... It's just... You see... I've had a tough time growing up because of my looks," Azalea said with difficulty.

The red-clad girl looked over Azalea to see what she was implying. "Is it your freckles, your figure, or your horns," she asked.

The cow Faunus twiddled her fingers before speaking up again. "The last two. I really take after my mother," Azalea admitted.

Giggling a bit, the 'genie' girl smiled at Azalea again. "Well, it's not a problem for me because I grew up in Vacuo. If you can survive there, you're welcome there. You're at Beacon! I'm sure that you belong here," she said placing a comforting hand on Azalea's shoulder. "I'm Layla Carbuncle. What's your name?"

"Azalea," the Faunus girl answered with a smile at Layla's words. "Thanks for that, Layla."

"Just doing my job," Layla remarked. "Maybe we should head to the auditorium now. Don't want to be late for what we're supposed to do next." When she turned around and Azalea followed, the Faunus noticed that her vest had a symbol of an oil lamp emitting smoke on the back.

As the two girls headed off, they passed the silver-eyed girl and the blonde boy from the airship. As he went on about motion sickness being a common problem, Azalea looked back at the girl and tried to remember where she had seen her before. Putting it aside for the moment, Azalea noticed that she and Layla reached the auditorium's front doors. Seeing it crowded with people, Azalea tried to calm herself down by taking deep breaths.

"Come on. Let's find a spot," Layla said as she and Azalea found an empty area to stop at. Looking around, Azalea saw the same faces she noticed on the airship along with a few others. She saw a Fox Faunus girl with a bushy tail and kimono-like outfit, a boy with long black hair that had a pink streak in it, and an energetic redhead next to him that was bouncing around on her feet. Seeing all the numerous people that were ready to become Huntsmen and Huntresses, Azalea realized that the next few years would be interesting for her.

Suddenly, Azalea heard a loud noise coming from next to her. Looking to her side, she saw that Vinyl Aurum was listening to her headphones while waiting for the assembly to start. Turning her head, the blue-haired girl saw Azalea and acknowledged her presence with a smile. Glad to have two friends that she made on her first day at Beacon, Azalea smiled as she pulled out her Scroll. Looking at a picture of her family home, Plum Blossom Farms, the Faunus girl kept her eyes on the device until a voice at the stage caught everyone's attention.

The headmaster of Beacon, Professor Ozpin, cleared his throat and spoke to everyone in the room at the time. "I'll... keep this brief," he started. As he spoke about how the students came to train to defend mankind, Ozpin also mentioned that the first year students were unguided and had wasted energy. Confused by this, most of the room broke into whispers about what he was talking about. "Your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to make the first step," he ended his speech before Glynda Goodwitch approached the microphone and explained that the students would be sleeping in the ballroom and initiation began tomorrow.

"That was strange," said a familiar voice. Looking behind them, Azalea and the girls saw Sunset was the one who spoke. "He seemed out of it a little," she mentioned before going into thought about it.

"Well, we should just go and find the ballroom," Layla said with a smile. "I'm so excited for tomorrow!"

Vinyl followed Layla's lead and the two girls left the room first, leaving Sunset and Azalea alone together as they walked at their own pace. Rubbing the back of her head, Sunset spoke to Azalea. "Look, I'm sorry if I made you nervous on the ride here. I know I look like a bully, but I'm not," she explained. "I was more into my training and studies rather than dealing with my classmates back at Garrison Academy."

Sunset frowned a little and rubbed her arm before she continued. "But, something happened a while before I graduated from there," she reluctantly admitted. "I was attacked and defenseless because I was too cocky. Grimm cornered me and I was about to die because I didn't listen to my teacher about staying with my group. I didn't even have my Semblance yet, so I couldn't use it to defend myself before getting struck down to the ground."

Azalea's green eyes widened at the story as Sunset explained everything. "Lucky for me, my teacher found where I was and took out every single Grimm near me," the fiery-haired girl told. "After that, she said that I shouldn't do everything by myself. Otherwise... Let's just say I wouldn't be here today if she didn't save me like she did," Sunset finished her story.

"Wow. That's quite a story," Azalea commented. "I just wanted to be a Huntress because my dad is one. He keeps dealing with Grimm that get to close to the farm and I wanted to be just like him."

Sunset laughed a little at the girl's reasons for attending Beacon. "That's actually pretty sweet," she said with a smile. "I hope that you make him proud. I'm doing the same for my teacher. She's like a mother to me," Sunset added while looking up at the sky. "I'm also hoping that I get my Semblance soon as well."

"You mean you don't have one yet," Azalea asked in surprise.

"No. I just haven't figured it out yet, Farm Girl," Sunset retorted back with a playful smile as she poked Azalea's forehead. As the two continued on their way, they found Vinyl and Layla at the entrance to the ballroom. The girls all enjoyed themselves and looked around Beacon before night fell.

* * *

In the ballroom, most students were in their sleepwear and had sleeping bags sprawled out on the floor. The majority of the teenagers either relaxed or messed around with each other. A few were attempting to be alone in the crowded room like Azalea was. Being a Faunus, she could easily see in the dark and saw several students in the darker areas. Seeing Sunset and Layla walking over towards her, Azalea wasn't surprised when the two sat down next to the Faunus.

Layla had changed her clothes for a simple white tank top and a pair of white sleeping pants with pink drawstrings. Sunset had changed into a set of purple pajamas with an emblem of a phoenix-winged sun on the shirt. Azalea was dressed in a set of flannel pajamas, but she had to leave the top buttons loose to let her chest breathe. With the way she had to wear her shirt, it revealed more freckles on the top of her breasts. Azalea was still cautious about what others would say about her horns, so she kept her bandana on with her pajamas.

"Lea, I'm sure that people won't mind your looks when we get to work tomorrow," Layla assured as she undid her hair from its ponytail and let it fall free to her hips.

As Azalea thought this over, Vinyl was listening to her headphones as she literally danced over to the Faunus girl and her new friends. Vinyl wore a black t-shirt with a pattern of white musical notes decorating it and a pair of blue shorts. Sitting down with the others, the four enjoyed the company of each other before they began to fall asleep.

Azalea slowly nodded off and was let to her thoughts before sleep took over her mind. 'This is it, Daddy. I'm going to become a Huntress,' she thought as she drifted off. 'I just hope all of the training you taught me pays off. I feel like I'm going to need it.' Soon, the Faunus girl was sound asleep and awaited the next day of her time at Beacon Academy.

* * *

 **OKAY! I hope you all liked this first chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Please leave a review and if you do, say what your favorite part of this chapter was or your favorite OC that was introduced.**

 **As you can tell from most of this chapter, it was focused on Azalea (who will be the main viewpoint character for most of the story). She is my favorite student OC and I love her because of all the effort I put into her creation! I have so many plans for her growth as a character, so I hope you stick around to see what happens.**

 **I will focus on other characters, too. So, don't just ignore some of the descriptions I gave a few background characters.**

 **The song I used for Vinyl and Azalea's scene on the airship was "StopRewind" by NateWantsToBattle (who I will make reference to in the story possibly by calling him by a RWBY character name. I like "Nathan Stark" for the Color Naming Rule). I also use that song as Azalea's own personal theme song, like Ruby and "Red Like Roses" or Yang and "I Burn".**

 **The next chapter will begin Azalea's initiation in the Emerald Forest with Sunset, Layla, Vinyl, and a few other characters. You will see just how they can fight and what their landing strategies are. Be sure to stay tuned. And don't worry, I'm still writing RWBY Rangers. This idea has just been in my head for TOO LONG and I wanted to share it.**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	2. The Journey Of 1000 Miles Begins

**WaterDragonMaverick here! Time for the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". This one will show off more characters and add to ones we met so far. Time for the start of the Emerald Forest Initiation Exam!**

 **Take your positions!**

 **RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P).**

 **I only own this story and my Original Characters.**

* * *

Morning came to Beacon Academy and students began to wake up in the ballroom. A few were so excited, they woke up before dawn and prepared for the day. One of these excited students included Layla Carbuncle, who was already dressed up in her combat outfit from yesterday. However, she wasn't as excited at the moment because she was busy with something else. "Azalea! Come on! Wake up," the Vacuo-born girl said as she attempted to wake the bovine Faunus from her sleep.

"Something wrong," Sunset asked as she walked back into the ballroom while adjusting her leather jacket. Vinyl was walking by her side with her sunglasses on her forehead and a raised eyebrow at the scene in front of them. Apparently, Layla was desperately pushing Azalea out of her sleeping bag and failing. Looking at the sight in front of her, Sunset only had one thing to say. "I thought farmers got up at the crack of dawn? Do we need a rooster or something?"

"Either help me wake her up, or get going," Layla groaned out as she stopped pushing Azalea. Vinyl decided to place her headphones next to Azalea and began blaring a loud rock song from them. The sudden pounding of drums and wailing guitar failed to wake up Azalea, however. Shocked that her music didn't wake her up, Vinyl kept cycling through her song library for the next few minutes. After going through her favorite songs, Vinyl comically curled into a ball as she retrieved her headphones.

Unsure what to do about the sleeping girl, none of the three noticed a few more people walk up to them until they heard a new voice. "What's going on over here," a male voice asked. Turning around, the girls saw that three new people approached them about the sleeping Azalea.

The one that spoke was a fair-skinned wolf Faunus boy with short, spiky, silvery gray hair and a tail of the same color. He stood at 5'10" with a lean and muscular build and he had piercing azure blue eyes. He was currently wearing a t-shirt with a symbol of a wolf's head howling with a broken chain around its neck, a pair of torn dark jeans with silver chains acting like a belt, and had brown boots. He also had a tattoo of the original White Fang emblem, a peaceful beast's head inside a circle, on his left arm. "Something the matter," he inquired as he saw Vinyl curled in a ball and Azalea peacefully sleeping.

"Our friend just won't wake up," Sunset explained to the group. "She's Azalea, I'm Sunset, that's Layla, and the one in the fetal position is Vinyl," Sunset introduced her herself and the others.

"I'm Silver Wuhuri," the wolf-tailed boy greeted.

"Cereza Fujita," a tall girl with butterfly-styled glasses said casually. She was 6'2 with a slender and curvy hourglass figure, but not to the same extent as Azalea. She had cherry red hair with pink bangs in a short style that resembled a pixie cut or a bob, a fair-skinned complexion with a beauty mark on her left cheek near her lips, and was wearing pink lipstick. Most noticeable about her when you looked though, was that her left eye was a ruby red color while her right eye was sapphire blue. Cereza's outfit consisted of a pair of black leather pants, a backless purple halter top, a pair of blue high heels, and a red leather jacket. She also wore a locket with a design that looked like a butterfly next to a crescent moon.

"Name's Rua Amaranth," a shorter girl with greenish-teal eyes said next to Silver. She was 5'2" with a moderate tan and had a pretty muscular, yet feminine figure with average proportions. She had a short and spiky pixie cut that was purplish-red in color. She was dressed in a torn red tank top, a denim jacket, leather pants, red combat boots, and she wore red fingerless gloves that had a black symbol of a fist with a spiked shield. Rua also wore a skull hair clip above her left eye and had a simple pair of amethyst earrings.

Layla spoke up next, "Now that introductions are out of the way, maybe we can try and wake up Lea!"

"Unless you want me to punch her, I don't have a clue on what to do," Rua quipped.

Cereza pondered on what to do and poked at Azalea's side. Smacking her hand away while staying asleep, Azalea just rolled onto her other side. "Hmm. She's a heavy sleeper," the bespectacled girl commented.

"I would say she's in a coma, but we just saw her move," Silver said. "That must be one nice dream if she's still asleep like this."

"If this keeps up, she won't make it to initiation or breakfast," Sunset said with a worried look in her eye.

Bolting up in an instant, Azalea startled the others as she woke up at Sunset's words. "What about breakfast," she asked before seeing the other students around her. Azalea slowly took in their varied expressions as she recognized the three new faces. Looking down at her clothes, Azalea blushed a little when a few extra buttons were revealed to have come undone in her sleep. "Hehehe. This is embarrassing," Azalea said as she closed her shirt and followed Layla to the showers.

* * *

In the dining hall, Azalea had changed into her regular clothes and met up with everyone from that morning. She remembered Silver, Rua, and Cereza from the airship to the school grounds, but was nervous about interacting with the latter two. Those thoughts were cast aside when they explained a little about themselves and the group began to talk with each other.

"So, what do you think is going to happen for the initiation," Cereza asked as she removed a cherry pit from her mouth. "I heard that each school has a different test."

Azalea would have spoken up, but she was too busy chewing an apple to answer with what her father told her. Sunset had half of a pancake in her mouth, so she couldn't provide an answer to Cereza's question either. Vinyl only shrugged and the rest of the table gave mutters that explained they were in the dark about it as well.

"Well, it doesn't really matter," Cereza said as she popped another cherry in her mouth. "I'm sure that we'll be fine," she assumed as she walked up and left to collect her weapons. Eventually, the others followed suit and headed for the lockers they were given yesterday. Before she left, Sunset quickly grabbed a donut and scarfed it down with a satisfied smile.

Azalea walked alongside Rua and Silver as they made their way through the halls. However, the taller girl bumped into somebody that gave her a bad feeling. A tall armored boy with burnt orange hair looked down at Azalea and smirked to himself. "Well, well. What do we have here? What's a girl like you doing here," he smugly asked.

Azalea only shrank away from his gaze as he turned around to face her. Rua and Silver glared at the boy in front of Azalea. "Leave her alone, jerk," Silver practically growled at him.

"Make me, Fido," the boy taunted back at the wolf Faunus. "I doubt a dog like you and a shrimp like her can do anything."

Rua heard what the boy said and immediately raised a fist to him. "WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME!?" Her loud voice echoed through the area and brought a little attention to themselves. "You can eat a d-," Rua tried to curse out before her mouth was covered by Azalea.

As the boys glared each other down, another boy made his way towards the four. He was an inch taller than Silver and had short dark brown hair. He had lightly tanned skin and his left cheek had a horizontal scar across it. He wore a white dress shirt, blue denim jeans, brown cowboy boots, a short brown poncho with twin bandoleers underneath, and a brown cowboy hat with an iron horseshoe symbol pointing upwards. He also had a belt that had a buckle with the same emblem holding twin holsters. His viridian eyes studied what was happening around the area and saw the incipient fight while Azalea was the only one who was scared.

"I suggest that you leave the lady and her friends alone," he said to the armored bully as he stepped in front of Azalea. Sneering at the new arrival, the bully only dismissed him and turned back to Silver. Just as he was about to punch the wolf Faunus, one of the teachers walked towards the group and addressed the teenagers.

"Is something going on here, Mr. Winchester," the green-haired instructor asked as he saw the crowded hall. Glaring at the four others students, the bully just left to get ready for the initiation. "Hmm. He never answered my question," the teacher noted.

"Thank you, Professor," Azalea sighed with relief. It was lucky for them all that both the drifter-looking boy and the teacher arrived to prevent Silver and Rua from getting in trouble before they even found out if they would officially make it into Beacon.

"It's no problem, my dear. And it's 'Doctor' Oobleck. If you pass the entrance exam, I will be your history teacher for your time at Beacon," Oobleck said as he spoke to Azalea. "Now, go and get your equipment. You'll need it, Miss Holstein."

As Doctor Oobleck left in a blur, Azalea turned back to her friends and saw that the cowboy was already walking off now that everything was settled down. "Who was that guy," the horned Faunus said to herself before she reached her locker. After unlocking it, she obtained her weapon in its compact form and looked it over again before placing it in her pocket.

As Azalea scanned the room, she saw a few of her new friends with their own swords, guns, or more unique weapons. She also saw the two girls from the airship again and this time, she saw them more clearly. Gasping, Azalea recognized them from trips with her father to an island in Vale called 'Patch'. "Ruby? Yang? Is that you," Azalea said to the girls.

Breaking away from their conversation about Ruby needing to 'break out of her shell', the sisters saw a face they haven't seen in a long time, but still seemed familiar to them. "Azalea? Oh my god! It really is you," the blonde exclaimed as she went up to the Faunus girl and gave her a strong hug. Hugging her back just as hard, Azalea was happy to see an old friend that she didn't expect to see after so long. Ending their hug, Yang looked over her friend and noted something. "You've really grown. Haven't you, Freckles," Yang playfully teased Azalea while subtly emphasizing her own developed figure.

Blushing in embarrassment, Azalea crossed her arms over her chest before speaking to Yang. "It's not all that great," she managed to squeak out. "But, I can say that you probably got a few unwanted admirers as well," Azalea said as she gently poked Yang in her stomach.

"It's really nice to see you again, Azalea," Ruby said as she placed her weapon under her hooded cloak. "Looks like we'll be fighting monsters together soon enough. I can't wait to see what your weapon is," Ruby exclaimed.

Soon, the three girls heard the sound of someone crying out in surprise and something getting stuck in a wall. Turning towards the source, they saw a blonde boy with a javelin in his hoodie and two famous faces. Pyrrha Nikos, who is a famous athlete from the Kingdom of Mistral, was apologizing to the boy because she most likely threw the javelin. And Weiss Schnee, the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company that was founded by her grandfather, Nicholas Schnee. A bit scared of Weiss because of her reputation, Azalea was quick to activate her Semblance and escape the locker room after hurriedly saying farewell to Ruby and Yang.

After leaving the building, Azalea uncloaked herself and calmed down. Knowing that someone like Weiss Schnee would be in her class was a little nerve-racking, but Azalea couldn't let some high society heiress from Atlas keep her down. She had to move on and continue with heading towards the initiation exam.

* * *

At Beacon Cliff, Azalea stood on a metal platform with Beacon Academy's emblem on it as she looked down the line of people on similar platforms. Seeing people like Layla, Silver (who was now wearing a couple belts over his shirt and a singled sleeved leather jacket with a metal spaulder on his right arm), and Sunset around her put the Faunus girl at a little ease. Soon, Ozpin and Glynda Goodwitch started to explain how exactly the test worked. Explaining that teams were indeed being formed today, Ozpin elaborated that everyone needed to pair up with somebody they can work well with. "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years," Ozpin said a very contradicting piece of information.

A couple of other students were surprised at the news or explained that it would have been smart to set up a signal to find each other if they knew each other. Azalea was on one of the more panicked students as she worried about who was going to be the first person she met. If she didn't see somebody she knew, she could just use her Semblance to hide. But, Azalea was also scared of if she couldn't find any of her new friends because of being partnered up already. Azalea's mind started to go crazy with different thoughts and it began to show as she shook in place.

Seeing Azalea shaking at the news, Sunset turned to the girl next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay, Azalea," she asked before hearing something.

 _"What if I'm partnered up with somebody who'll hate me because of my horns?!"_

Pulling back her hand, Sunset was shocked at hearing what Azalea said. However, it was more of the fact that Azalea's mouth didn't move as she heard her concerns. "What was that," Sunset said as she looked at Azalea.

Turning to Sunset, Azalea steadied her breathing as she saw the fiery-haired girl looking like she heard something surprising. "What was what," Azalea asked.

"You have horns? Are you a Faunus," Sunset whispered in Azalea's ear.

Quietly gasping, Azalea stared at Sunset for a few seconds. "How did you know," the farm girl asked back in a whisper.

"I can't explain. But, I think I heard you say it. We'll discuss this later when we aren't going to be shot into the forest," Sunset stated as they turned back to Ozpin.

"...to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path... or you WILL die," Ozpin explained and one student laughed nervously. Ozpin explained that each pair of students would make their way to an old temple and get a relic to secure a position on a team while teachers could only watch their progress. "Take your positions," Ozpin instructed as everyone got into a ready stance.

Layla and Sunset stretched their arms and backs before they were sent flying off the cliff with determined faces. Azalea could see a few other people prepare their equipment before they were catapulted as well. Eventually, it was her turn and she was launched by the springboard underneath her. Flying through the air was actually easy for her because her father had prepared her for being thrown about 80 feet in the air by the platform.

Soon, Azalea saw a few others start their descents and landing strategies. A few students used a whip form of their weapons to catch onto branches, some planted their blades onto the trees, some used their Semblances to their advantage, and even a couple of students like Layla used Dust to slow their fall. Azalea saw her chance to start her landing strategy and pulled out her personal weapon. A Multi-Action Dust Baton called 'Gladion' that allowed her to cycle through what kind of Dust she needed to use for the situation at hand.

Cycling to a Wind Dust setting, Azalea swung her baton like a magic wand to create a small, but powerful whirlwind to slow herself down. As soon as she decelerated enough, Azalea caught onto a tree branch and steadied herself. After placing her baton away, Azalea began to climb down from the enormous tree. Growing up on a farm with a couple of large orchards really helped with her own climbing skills, so the Faunus was able to get safely down to the ground.

With her boots on the ground, Azalea's mind went back to earlier with Sunset as she trekked her way north. She knew that she didn't say anything to Sunset about being a Faunus, so how did the girl find out? Something strange was happening if Sunset learned her secret without seeing anything, but also heard it from Azalea on the cliff despite not actually saying anything.

* * *

As Layla Carbuncle was sent flying into the air, she used her Aura to activate the Dust crystals embedded in her jewelry to create a stream of water that she used with her own Semblance. With an ability of telekinesis to control numerous objects around her, the girl controlled the water to use it as a makeshift grappling hook and slow herself down. After stopping on a branch, she pulled out her scimitar and planted the blade into the tree trunk before sliding down.

Layla got the ground and saw a small pack of Grimm in front of her. Smiling to herself, she spun her sword around and prepared for a battle. The Creeps lunged at the girl, but the first was cut down quickly and the others soon followed. Layla soon pulled out her second weapon, a large ornate pistol that resembled a genie's lamp, and fired it into the closest Creep's mouth to kill the monster. A few other of the lizard-like Grimm dove underground to try and surprise Layla, but she anticipated it and nimbly dodged the emerging monsters before slashing at them.

Soon, the Creeps were killed and their bodies began to vanish into smoke. Taking a deep breath, Layla relaxed after the fight and heard something else a few minutes later. "No touching," a sensual female voice said like she was taunting her opponent. Soon, an Ursa slammed into a tree in front of Layla and fell down to the ground as it died. "Poor guy could have lasted longer. What a shame," the voice said as Layla turned to its source.

Cereza and Layla locked eyes as the former adjusted her glasses. "Well, looks like we're partners now, luv," Cereza said as she looked over her tonfa guns. Putting away her own weapons, Layla smiled at the new partner she had.

However, the purple-haired girl was still worried for Azalea because it meant she wasn't able to be her partner and make sure the Faunus girl didn't get harassed by anyone. "I hope Azalea's going to be fine without me as her partner," Layla said to herself as she and Cereza headed north.

* * *

As Sunset walked through the Emerald Forest, she had a few things from the cliff plaguing her mind. What was with Azalea 'saying' she had horns? How did she hear the girl with her mouth moving? What is going on? All of these questions filled her head as she cut down a few low-hanging branches with her weapon's sword form. "This is just too confusing. I need to find Azalea and we need some answers from each other," Sunset noted as she spoke to herself.

"Hold on... Last night with Layla," Sunset muttered as she stopped. 'She said something about Azalea's looks when we met back up. And Azalea still wore her bandana,' she thought. "She must have learned before and kept it a secret with Azalea. I still need to talk with them when this is over," Sunset stated before continuing on her path.

After a few minutes of walking, she heard something familiar before a sudden noise overtook it for a moment. The noise was loud and deep like a drumbeat and it came from above Sunset. Looking up, she saw Vinyl Aurum blast some energy from her hands to slow her descent and activate her weapon. With two large disks of hard light appearing beneath her feet, Vinyl landed on the new platforms and spiraled down to the ground with style. Landing in front of Sunset, Vinyl removed her shades to make eye contact with the girl she met before and partner up with her.

"Looks like we're partners," Vinyl laconically said as she put her sunglasses back on.

"Sure does," Sunset replied back with a hand on her hip. As they made their way north, Sunset's mind continued back to the topic of Azalea. 'That thing on the cliff is STILL bugging me. I just hope Azalea does well in this place,' Sunset thought to herself.

* * *

Azalea made her way to a clearing in the forest and tried to make sense of which direction she was going. However, she heard a growling sound and saw a pack of Beowolves surrounding her. With a fire in her green eyes, Azalea pulled Gladion back out and set it to her personal favorite setting, Lightning. As the werewolf-like beasts lunged forward, Azalea ducked underneath the first sweeping claw and uppercutted the Grimm with her free hand. The impact sent the monster flying into a tree branch and it was impaled by the wood.

Swinging her baton, Azalea smacked the Beowolf in front of her with the weapon and shocked the beast with every strike. As the stunned beast stumbled back, the Faunus girl threw the Grimm over her shoulder and into a couple of others. The pack leader stepped forward and roared at the girl before leaping into the air. As it moved towards her, the large Beowolf howled to signal the others to attack Azalea. Seeing two wolves jump towards her from both sides, she rolled forward to dodge and set Gladion to use Ice Dust. Striking the ground with her weapon, Azalea froze the ground beneath the leader and watched the Grimm slip onto its back when it landed.

Acting fast, Azalea jumped in the air and did an elbow drop on the open pack leader to deal heavy damage. One of the remaining Beowolves slashed at Azalea's head with its claws, but barely did any damage to her. Retaliating, the Faunus girl kicked the Beowolf's legs to knock it down and finished it off by stomping on its head. With another Grimm's skull cracked, Azalea pulled out Gladion again and activated its Fire Dust setting. With a swing of her baton like it was a magic wand, a ripple of flames shot around Azalea and torched the Grimm surrounding the girl.

As several of the Grimm started burning to death, a few gunshots sounded out and bullets nailed the ignited monsters in their heads. Looking at the source of the gunshots, Azalea saw that same cowboy from when that bully was harassing her and her friends. Revolvers drawn, he shot down more Grimm as Azalea grabbed another large Beowolf from behind in a suplex. Slamming the beast head first into the ground, Azalea defeated the last Grimm as she saw the others were loaded with lead from the newcomer.

With the area clear of Grimm, Azalea turned to her new mysterious partner and the two locked eyes after he reloaded his guns. "Thanks... for trying to help back at the school," Azalea nervously said as she rubbed the top of her head. But as she did that, she noticed that she had lost her bandana during the fight. Panicked, she turned to the battlefield to see shreds of cloth near the melting patch of ice. Covering her head with her hands, Azalea curled into a ball and whimpered in fear at what her official partner would say about her heritage.

Suddenly, Azalea felt something be placed gently on top of her head and saw the cowboy next to her. Looking up, she saw he removed his hat and made the connection. "It's no problem, Miss. Just had to help you get rid of that jerk earlier," he said as he scanned the area for himself.

Surprised at how he was acting, Azalea stood there with her jaw open. "Y-you don't mind my horns," she asked.

"Why would I? They don't change the fact that I'll help a pretty girl in trouble," he stated like it was a fact of life. "Besides, I'm from Vacuo."

Blushing at his kind words, Azalea thought to herself. 'That's the second person from Vacuo to help me like this.' As they walked ahead and came across the temple, the duo noticed that they were the first ones to reach the area. "Wow. Lucky us," Azalea said as she made her way down.

"Yeah. Lucky us," the gunslinger said as he followed the Faunus girl. Looking over the podiums, the two noticed that the relics were common chess pieces. "Guess we better choose one. Ladies first," he said.

Azalea looked over the different pieces and she thought over which one to get. Thinking back to her time on the farm, she remembered something that her mother said. 'Lea, do you know my favorite piece in chess? I know you think it might be the queen, but I actually like the pawn more. Step by step, they can deal with anything that gets in their way and eventually grow into a powerful figure. If you think ahead enough and persevere, you can have more than one queen to aid in your strategy,' the memory sounded in her mind.

Picking up a golden pawn piece, Azalea smiled to herself before turning to her partner. As the two walked back, Azalea realized something. "Hey, I never did get your name," she said to the cowboy.

After a moment of silence, the boy just smiled and said one word, "Slate."

"Slate," Azalea said to herself and pulled down on the hat she was wearing to try and hide her blush. As the two made their way through the woods, something big flew over them and they looked up to see a gargantuan Nevermore. "Glad that we aren't dealing with something like that," Azalea remarked as the Grimm bird ignored them.

"Yeah. Wouldn't want to be fighting something like that," Slate said.

A few minutes later, screams were heard through the forest. Thinking somebody was in trouble, Azalea hurried off in the direction of the screaming. As the two teenagers made their way to the origin of the voice, they found a cave that looked like something broke out of it. "What happened here," Azalea pondered aloud.

Looking behind him, Slate saw a few more faces arrive at the scene. "Looks like we have company," he said as Cereza and Layla showed up to see the decimated cavern entrance. Azalea was happy to see her friends and hugged Layla. As the girls reunited, they saw something in the distance as it came rushing towards them.

As the four tried to get out of the way, Slate ended up tripping over one of the rocks and fell towards Cereza. However, she seemed to vanish as she dodged the falling boy and they both ended up standing next to Layla and Azalea. Despite their confusion of what just happened, the four saw that there was a massive King Taijitu staring them down. "Well... This will be smashing," Cereza said in a collected tone while the others were unnerved by the size of the snake in front of them.

"At least things can't get worse," Slate said before a roaring sound came from the forest next to them. "I know, I know. The moment I said it," the cowboy muttered as he got his hat back from Azalea.

Coming through the forest, Sunset, Vinyl, and two other girls were being chased by a small group of Griffons. The beasts took out the trees around them so that they could fly around more and give the King Taijitu more room to strike. The new group of eight looked at what they were about to face off against and they all had one thing in common about the battles ahead. 'We have our work cut out for us.'

* * *

 **CLIFFHANGER! I wanted to leave it here because it would give me more time for coming up with the action sequences for the upcoming fight and it would give me more room to introduce the other two girls who showed up to the "party".**

 **Hope you guys are enjoying the story so far and I will make the next "episode" have a few cool action sequences for fighting this new set of Grimm for the challenge. Will our heroes make it through? Or will they fail and bite the dust? Find out next time on "Sideline: Another Story"!**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	3. Players and Pieces: Another Story

**WaterDragonMaverick here with the third chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". In this one, we'll see how Azalea and her friends get out of the situation they got in during the last chapter. Cornered by a King Taijitu and a group of Griffons, it looks like we'll see how everyone fights in this chapter.**

 **Combat Ready!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I own nothing but my Original Characters.**

* * *

As Azalea, Slate, Layla, and Cereza stared down the King Taijitu that emerged from the forest and ruined several trees, they also saw another quartet running towards them. Or more specifically, away from a small group of Griffons. With more than one type of Grimm to deal with, the eight had one thing to say about their situation. "We have our work cut out for us," Cereza said as she took notice of the four new girls.

Azalea recognized Sunset and Vinyl from before, but she saw two new faces with them. The first was a blonde girl in a green qipao dress and shorts. Her hair was in a styled bun with a hairpin holding it together. She had brown eyes that had a green color around the edge of the irises and wore light turquoise eyeshadow as well. She stood at 5'6" with a toned hourglass figure and a pale complexion. She also wore martial arts slippers on her feet and her hairpin had a jeweled pendant that reminded Azalea of fruit on a tree. She carried a spear with her and with a flick of her wrist, it transformed into a bladed whip that struck at a Griffon that got too close.

The second girl reminded Azalea of a ninja because of her outfit. A mostly black costume that looked like it focused on stealth, but seemed to have a fishnet vest or chainmail underneath what she could see and a red scarf that covered her mouth. Azalea also saw she had some sort of high-tech metal armguards and she wore tabi-styled boots with regular shin guards. The girl was the shortest among the group at 5'3" and even had the most petite figure between the four. She had short and messy plum-colored hair that reached the nape of her neck. The ninja girl's purple eyes scanned the area as she gripped the wakizashi sword at her waist.

Sunset saw Azalea and stopped at her side. "Azalea, we need to talk after dealing with these Griffons," she said before turning her head to see the giant two-headed snake that Azalea was staring down. "And the overgrown garden hose, too. I should've guessed," the fire-haired girl remarked as she rolled her eyes.

"We'll need to take care of everything by splitting up. I'm sure we can handle one this," Cereza casually said as she took aim. "Everybody pick a target and make sure it dies," the cherry-haired girl ordered as one of the Griffons swooped down to attack her. Dodging the monster, everyone saw her speed increase as she delivered a series of powerful punches and shots from her tonfa guns. As a final heavy strike was dealt, the Griffon's body started to evaporate and Cereza's speed returned to normal.

"There's something about her power that seems different than regular speed boosting," Sunset said before spinning her sword around to transform it. Turning the weapon into a sniper rifle, Sunset took aim and fired a round into one of the Griffon's eyes. Nailing it with a direct shot, the monster flailed around in pain before crashing into another Grimm. "Yes! Got it," Sunset said before one of the King Taijitu's heads rushed at her. Backflipping out of the way, Sunset unloaded her weapon's clip into the snake to deal some damage to it. However, the armored scales of the Grimm deflected most of her shots and only left some indents in its skin. "Damn," Sunset cursed before changing her weapon back into a sword.

As the first head of the Taijitu attacked Sunset, the second one hissed at Layla and the two girls that came with the sniper and Vinyl. "Out of the way," the ninja girl said as she swiftly dodged an attack and slashed at the snake's eye. Despite getting a cut in, the snake still stood ready to attack. The black half of the snake began to coil around the three girls, but they jumped away before it could do anything to them.

"Watch this, darlings," the blonde said as she placed hands in front of each other for a brief moment. As she did this, gemstones seemed to form in-between her palms and she released the gems at the snake like a shotgun blast. Each jewel hit the snake and shattered on impact to deal damage despite the scales defending the beast. Impressed by the girl's Semblance, Layla turned to her as the blonde smiled. "Who says you can't fight monsters with style," she said before turning her whip back into a spear to pierce a nearby Griffon in the neck.

Slate took aim with his pistols and fired bullets at the Griffons that surrounded Azalea. "Got your back, partner," he said as rolled to dodge a Griffon's attack and reloaded. As three more landed next to him, Slate fired one bullet at a Griffon's beak and the projectile landed right in the eye of the Griffon next to it. Then as he dodged the next attack, the previously shot Griffon crashed into the third and Azalea slammed her heel into the two monsters. "And I see you have mine," Slate thanked the girl before firing at new Grimm that showed up in the battle.

Vinyl activated her Hard Light Projection Braces, or 'Rhythm Scratch' as she would call them, and summoned a blue hard light katana in her hands. With Creeps and Beowolves joining the fray, Vinyl dodged their attacks and delivered a couple of slashes at each. As a Beowolf swung its claw at her, the music lover flipped back and dropped to the ground. Activating Rhythm Scratch, Vinyl summoned her hard light katana at her feet and she slashed away at the Beowolf as she did a break dance underneath it. Swiftly getting back on her feet, Vinyl summoned the final hard light weapon she had with Rhythm Scratch, a pair of gauntlets with three claw-like blades sticking out of them.

Before Vinyl slashed away at the Grimm, the blue color turned gold and the braces of Rhythm Scratch seemed to play music. As she swung her arms, the new color of the weapon seemed to show some sort of increased strength as Grimm were cut down even faster. Slashing away at the Grimm and taking off body parts, Vinyl managed to deal with most of the new monsters before she turned off her weapon.

Turning back to Layla, she held out her palm and an energy blast fired at a Griffon that was about to get her from behind. The blast sounded out with a loud drum-like beat and nailed the monster in the face. Giving a thumbs up to each other, the two returned to fighting before Sunset and Cereza regrouped with everyone. "Admittedly, this is getting hard," Cereza said as she reloaded her guns.

"And we still have that giant purse to deal with," the spear-wielding blonde noted as she landed next to Sunset. "Anyone have a plan?"

Cereza and Sunset looked around and saw the ninja girl using her armguards as a holster for her shuriken and throw them into a couple of Creeps. They also saw Azalea throwing large boulders at flying Griffons and send the beasts falling to the ground. Layla was also using her Telekinesis to send Grimm flying into each other for a chance to slash at them.

Thinking about this, Sunset absentmindedly touched Cereza's hand and heard something. _"If I used my Semblance to slow time around myself, I'm sure that I can lead that monster into a trap with Azalea's strength helping."_

"What did you say," Sunset asked Cereza.

"I didn't say anything," Cereza said to the girl.

"You just said that we could use you Semblance to lead the Grimm into a trap with Azalea's strength," Sunset said. "I was think something like that as well. But, I didn't know what you could do."

Cereza placed her hand on her head in confusion, but realized that Sunset was right about her idea. "We'll need tell the others the plan," Cereza stated.

Nodding, Sunset went to Azalea and Slate as they managed to kill the last Griffon. "Guys, we have a plan for the King Taijitu," Sunset said to them. "Cereza's going to lead it right to you. Try and stop it from attacking," she explained.

"I think I have an idea on how to do that," Azalea said as she looked back at the cavern.

As Cereza finished explaining the idea to the others, the eight regrouped as the King Taijitu's heads faced the novice Huntresses and Huntsman. Hissing at them, the twin-headed snake glared at the teenagers before the first move was made. The ninja girl placed her hands together and made a hand seal as she released a plume of smoke around her. The rippling cloud covered the area and the black Taijitu head attacked what was in front of it. However, it ended up not hitting anything and it soon felt somebody running along its back.

Cereza managed to dodge the snake's lunge and used her Semblance to slow down time around herself. She liked to called this power, 'Time Mirage', and she landed blow after blow on the snake's head while she was faster than everything else. She ended the duration of her Time Mirage by slamming her heel into the snake's skull and forcing it in Azalea's direction at the cavern opening.

The Taijitu's mouth was wide open as it went flying at the Faunus girl, but she stood her ground and waited for it to get closer. During Cereza's onslaught, Azalea picked up a rock that was about the size of the snake's head and she threw the large stone into the Grimm's maw. As the snake's mouth was kept from closing, Azalea pulled out Gladion and slammed it onto the ground to send a spire of rock into the serpent's neck to fully immobilize the monster.

With the head dealt with, Slate and Layla aimed their guns at the monster's eye and they each fired a different Dust round into it. Slate used two Wind Dust bullets to spiral into the monster while Layla used a Fire Dust bullet to cremate the Creature of Grimm. The two different elements combined as they traveled to the snake and created a spiral of flames that incinerated that monster's head to ash. The snake was now down to one head and that gave the others an advantage.

As the ninja girl took to the trees that remained, she used her armguard's magnetic capabilities to retrieve her previously used shuriken before throwing them back into the Grimm's eyes. With the snake blinded by the throwing stars, it was at a major disadvantage as it tried to attack the girls it was fighting. But, it was still a snake and it sensed the footsteps of the Huntresses-in-training on the ground. Coiling around them, it planned on constricting the girls and crushing their bodies. However, they easily jumped out and it only felt pain from what it was currently coiling around.

As Sunset jumped out from the King Taijitu's attack, she activated her Aura and the back of her leather jacket began to light up. With a glowing emblem of a sun with her sleeves also glowing to give the image of phoenix wings, Sunset unleashed a torrent of fire at the grass where she and the other girls once stood. With the flames affecting the serpent, it straightened itself out again before noticing the lack of vibrations around it. Only feeling the heat of the fire it was near, the Grimm failed to locate its targets.

Using Rhythm Scratch's hard light discs, Vinyl created platforms for herself and the girls to stand on as they prepared to finish the reptilian Grimm off for good. Arming her sniper rifle, Sunset took aim at the monster and fired a round into one of its damaged eyes. As the snake sounded off in pain, the blonde girl formed more gems between her hands and fired them at the monster as Vinyl released an energy blast from her palm at the same time. The projectiles collided with each other in the Grimm's mouth and they exploded in a brilliant light, taking the King Taijitu's second head with it.

The battle was finally over and all eight collapsed on the ground with relief. After catching their breath, Layla and Vinyl laughed in delight. "That was awesome! I can't believe all of that happened," Layla shouted in excitement as she recalled the battle.

"It was bloody amazing," Cereza said with a less enthusiastic tone, but she still carried a lot of fervor in her words.

As they laughed and took note of how well everyone did against the Grimm, one of the newer girls spoke up. "I don't think we had the pleasure of introducing ourselves," the blonde said. "My name is Celadon Flynn. Call me whatever you want, darlings."

"Rebecca Haze," the purple-haired ninja stated as she adjusted her scarf.

"I'm Layla. That's Azalea, Cereza, Sunset, Vinyl, and... I'm sorry, I don't think we got your name," Layla said as she listed off the names of everyone else.

"Slate," the cowboy said with a tip of his hat.

"Come on. The temple's this way," Azalea said as she led the group to get their relics. Because the battle they had took place as she and Slate were coming back with their chess piece, she assumed that nobody else found the temple because all of the relics were there when they made it.

Catching up to the Faunus, Sunset decided to talk to her about what happened at the cliff. Taking note of her exposed horn, Sunset tapped Azalea on the shoulder to get her attention. "So, you ARE a Faunus. Why hide it," Sunset asked.

"...Growing up was a pretty big problem with some of the kids at my schools. They made fun of my horns, mocked my family, and it only got worse when I hit puberty," Azalea said as she turned to talk with Sunset face to face. Everyone else heard the story and immediately did the math as Azalea hugged herself.

"Azalea, darling. I only just met you, but I can tell that you're a strong and beautiful woman. You shouldn't let a couple of kids who were jealous that they couldn't see in the dark bring you down," Celadon said as she smiled warmly at the farm girl.

Slate placed his hat back on Azalea's head as she saw everyone else comforting her as well. Azalea smiled back at them and led the way to the temple. On their way, Sunset returned back to something during the fight. "I heard Cereza talk about her plan, but she didn't say anything to me," she noted. "What was with that?"

Vinyl placed an arm on Sunset's shoulder and the latter heard something from her despite not seeing her move her lips. _"Maybe your Semblance let you do that?"_ Looking at Vinyl like she suddenly grew a horn out of her forehead, Sunset was surprised to hear her voice.

Deciding to test the idea of her Semblance developing, Sunset focused on Azalea to see if something would happen. After a few seconds, she heard Azalea's voice in her head just like before with her, Vinyl, and Cereza. _"I'm so glad that I came here. I thought I wouldn't actually make friends, but I was wrong! I was wrong and I couldn't be happier!"_

Sunset looked at her hands and at Azalea before she started laughing in delight. "Hahahaha! I did it! I found my Semblance," she exclaimed as she hugged Azalea. Surprised by the sudden contact and the laughter, Azalea turned around to see an ecstatic Sunset. "I can't believe it! This is amazing! Miss Celeste would be so proud," she continued.

"What's happening," Celadon asked as she tried to calm Sunset down.

"I think I can read minds," Sunset explained. "But, I feel like there's more to it than that."

Cereza walked ahead of everyone else and saw the temple in the distance. "I'm happy for you, luv. But, it looks like we're here," she said as she fixed her hair.

Azalea and Slate looked around the area and saw that a couple of other pieces were missing from the podiums. Both sets of rooks, the black bishops, and a pair of knights were taken. Seeing that there was still the second gold-colored pawn, Cereza picked it up as it was one of the only ones left by itself. "I guess you'll do, little one," Cereza said to the relic like it was a child before gently placing it in her jacket pocket.

"Guess we need one as well," Sunset said as she looked over the remaining pieces.

Celadon saw the gold queen and her eyes seemed to sparkle. "Ooh, you'll be perfect! I don't understand why nobody chose the queen? She's one of the most powerful pieces in a game," she stated as she picked it up.

"To be fair, the first person who came here probably just grabbed the first piece they found and left before they gave it a second thought," Sunset mused as she picked up the second queen.

Clearing her throat, Azalea caught everyone's attention as she pulled out the pawn from her pocket. "Actually, me and Slate got here first and I chose the pawn because of something my mom said," she said. Sunset gave a nervous chuckle as she heard that and rubbed the back of her head.

"Well, I suppose that we head back to the cliff," Rebecca said as she went over her shuriken arsenal to double check her supply.

As everyone agreed, they headed back before anybody else got to the temple. Along the way, the eight chatted the whole trip through the forest and dealt with any stray Grimm that came across their path. The eight teens were so caught up in their talks that they reached the cliff and met back up with Ozpin and Professor Goodwitch.

"Hello students. I see that you did well on your test," Ozpin greeted them as he sipped from his mug. "I hope to see you in the auditorium to learn which teams you'll be on and working alongside for your years at Beacon." Slate and the girls all agreed with the headmaster before heading back to Beacon Academy.

* * *

"Silver Wuruhi, Vixen Kosaku, Rua Amaranth, and Lapis Ondine," Ozpin announced the next four students that passed the initiation. The auditorium was crowded with upperclassmen, staff, and faculty as Ozpin assigned this year's teams. "The four of you retrieved the black rook pieces. From this day forward, you will be known as Team SLVR. Lead by... Silver Wuruhi."

As everyone applauded, Azalea and her friends took note of the other two members of Silver's team. Lapis was a pale girl standing at 5'4" and had a curvy figure with an average chest and wide hips. She had short spiky blue hair that reached her ears and she wore blue earrings with rose gold gems. She had white eyes and wore wisteria eyeshadow at the corners of them. Her cheeks had a natural blush to them that made her look like a happy child. She wore a black crop top with metal pauldrons, detached sleeves that had a seafoam green shell pattern at the wrists, black booty shorts, a gray belt that held up two separated halves of a purple skirt that had a blue symbol of a mermaid holding a crystal, and blue combat boots with metal greaves.

Vixen Kosaku was a red fox Faunus that stood at 5'5" and was easily identified by her bushy tail. She had a fair-skinned complexion and a slim hourglass figure with an average sized chest. She had emerald green eyes and wild orange hair that was cut short. Vixen also had a beauty mark on her right cheek near her nose. Vixen's attire consisted of a short-sleeved kimono with a flower pattern that ended at her thighs and had a fur collar. The kimono had a large sash that looked like it could carry her equipment and she wore knee-high stockings along with wooden sandals that had an ankle strap.

As they left the stage, Silver and Rua waved to Azalea and the others as the two passed. Ozpin called up the next four people at the same time. "Vinyl Aurum, Rebecca Haze, Celadon Flynn, and Sunset Blaze. The four of you retrieved the white queen pieces. From this day forward, you will be know as Team SAFR. Led by... Sunset Blaze," Ozpin said to the four girls. Sunset looked surprised by the decision he made, but Vinyl and the others each gave a thumbs up at their new leader.

Stepping down from the stage, Ozpin called the next four students up. "Cereza Fujita, Slate Quartz, Layla Carbuncle, and Azalea Calla Holstein," he announced as the four took the stage. Because they only took the time to get cleaned up, Azalea decided to not put a new bandana on until the morning and revealed her horns. "The four of you retrieved the white pawn pieces. From this day forward, you will be known as Team FCSA. Led by... Cereza Fujita," Ozpin declared as Cereza adjusted her glasses and Slate tipped his hat to the headmaster.

"Yay! We're teammates, Lea," Layla said as she hugged the Faunus girl. The two laughed together as they stepped off the stage and let the last three teams be announced. With the bully from this morning leading the next team, Azalea was a bit cautious of encountering him the next time.

However, the next team was JNPR and Pyrrha Nikos was a member of it alongside the blond knight boy and two students who looked like they were very familiar with each other. After Jaune Arc was named leader of his team, Ozpin congratulated him and Pyrrha accidentally punched him to the floor. Most of the room laughed at that and Azalea was in that crowd of laughter.

Finally, the last team to be announced was Team RWBY that had not only Ruby and Yang, but also Weiss Schnee and a mysterious girl named Blake Belladonna. The last name sounded familiar to Azalea, but she ignored it as Ruby was named leader of her team. The sisters hugged and Ozpin said one thing about everything that happened. "It looks like things are shaping up to be an... interesting year," he commented to himself.

* * *

That night, Team FCSA went to their new dorm rooms and got ready for bed. "I deserve a good rest from today," Cereza said as she emerged wearing a black nightgown.

"I think will all do," Slate said as he put his hat on his bedpost. Wearing a simple pair of pajama pants, Slate slipped into his bed and began to fall asleep. "Goodnight, y'all."

Layla undid her ponytail and did the same thing as Slate. Azalea was looking out of the window and stared at the moon while her thoughts wandered to her last two days at Beacon. Despite some slip ups on her part, she made so many friends and even met up with two old ones. In Azalea's mind, she was happy to have come to Beacon. And now, she was ready to drift off to sleep as she prepared for adventures to come.

* * *

 **And with that, the Emerald Forest has been cleared! The three teams I have made are set up. In case you can't figure out what colors they are (besides the obviousness of SLVR), Team SAFR is "Sapphire" like the blue gem and Team FCSA is "Fuchsia" like the purple flower.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the action and bonding of the two teams here and I will make sure that SLVR gets some time with them as well. After all, now we start classes at Beacon and what happens during the time between episodes that focused on RWBY and JNPR. Leave a review if you liked the chapter!**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	4. Bites The Dust

**Hey readers! WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". This chapter will focus on having the three teams get through their morning routines and first classes of Beacon. Fortunately, they won't be late like Team RWBY and Team JNPR were for Port's class. XD**

 **Live and Learn!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters in Team SLVR, FCSA, and SAFR. Also, Professor Camellia.**

* * *

Daybreak at Beacon was peaceful on the school grounds as birds sang and light shined through the windows of the dormitories. The young warriors were waking up for their first classes of their years at the Huntsman Academy. However, a few were content in spending the first hours of the day in dreamland. "Come on! Wake up, Lea," Layla said as she tried to pull the Faunus off of her bed. Unfortunately for Layla, no progress was being made on her end as her grip came loose and she crashed to the floor. "Ouch," the purple-haired girl moaned out.

"I'm surprised at this. She's still asleep," Cereza said as she adjusted her Beacon Academy uniform. While she wore the uniform correctly, Cereza had decided to replace the ribbon on the collar of her shirt with her own locket for a different look among her classmates. "Maybe we should use the alarm clock?"

"I tried that already," Layla said. "I used mine, yours, and Slate's to try and wake up Azalea. All three rang near her head and nothing happened."

"I'll be surprised if she didn't go deaf from that," Cereza remarked as she checked her hair in a mirror she brought.

Slate came back out with his own Beacon Academy uniform on and tugged at the tie. "I don't think I like this around my neck," he said as he removed the tie and threw it onto his bed. Taking his hat from the bedpost, the cowboy saw Azalea was still asleep as he put in on. "She's still snoozing?"

"Ye-he-he-he-hessss," Layla whined as she tried using her Semblance to remove Azalea's blankets. However, Azalea kept a solid grip on her covering and only rolled onto her side. After the failed telekinetic wake-up call, Layla only blew her bangs out of her face while she scowled. "Azalea! You wake up now or I'll...," Layla shouted at the sleeping Faunus before she thought of what she would do. "I'll... I got nothing," she confessed as she hung her head in shame.

Hearing a knock on the door, Cereza opened it to see who it was this early. Recognizing the faces from yesterday, Cereza greeted the guests. "Ah, Rua, Vixen, Lapis. Come on in," she said as the female members of Team SLVR came in while wearing their school uniforms. "We're just having trouble waking up Azalea," she admitted.

"Have you tried this," Vixen said with a mischievous tone and a matching look in her eyes. Walking up to Azalea, Vixen held the sleeping girl's nose shut and after a few seconds, Azalea bolted up while taking deep breaths.

Gasping for air after Vixen's idea of waking her, Azalea turned to them and realized that everyone else was in uniform. Even Layla, who wore her circlet with her uniform, was dressed for classes at 9am. "I should get changed," Azalea sheepishly said as she headed toward the bathroom with a change of clothes.

* * *

As the girls of his team needed time to change, Silver Wuruhi decided to get a morning workout in before classes start. Heading outside without his jacket, the Faunus boy completed his warm up and decided to run around campus before heading back in for a shower. While he ran, he saw another girl doing her own routine. The flowing blonde hair seemed familiar, but he couldn't place it until he matched her pace. Recognizing her from yesterday when teams were sorted out, Silver nodded to Celadon Flynn as she continued her morning run.

"Nice day for a workout, huh," Silver said as he started to pass Celadon.

"It really is," she said as the Faunus turned around and started to run backwards to keep speaking with her. "Is that really necessary," Celadon remarked at the gray-haired male with a smirk.

Silver only chuckled before answering. "I like the challenge. You think that you can beat me to the dorms," he asked the other runner. "Or are too afraid to fight?"

"A lady doesn't start fights, Mr. Wuruhi," Celadon said as she saw him turn around. "But, that doesn't mean she can't finish them," she declared as she began to run faster. The Wolf Faunus saw her accept his challenge and he picked up the pace to match her.

During their little race, Celadon and Silver were at the last corner before the dormitories when the Faunus boy spoke up. "You're good. But, you need to think practically for any competition or fight," Silver said before his body began to glow. Celadon saw a flash of light cover Silver before his body changed into something else. Silver's humanoid body had turned into a real wolf's body as the canine dashed ahead of the blonde girl. Entering through the door, Silver stopped and transformed back into his regular body. "Like that," he panted out from the rush as Celadon came behind him.

"Was that your Semblance," Celadon asked. "Because that's a gorgeous power! You can transform into a wolf and back again. It's amazing," she continued when she caught her breath.

"Thanks. That's really nice of you to say," Silver said as he headed back to his dorm room. "Well, we should get ready for classes," he said before opening the door.

"We're all neighbors," Celadon reminded of the living arrangements of Teams SLVR, FCSA, and SAFR.

"Oh, right. Slipped my mind," Silver said as he opened the door to his room. However, as he stepped inside, a bucket of soapy water fell onto his head. After spitting it out of his mouth, he saw a note on the bucket as he took it off his head. "Hmm. 'You were gone too long, so I decided to bring the shower to you. Vixen'," Silver read aloud as Celadon tried to control her snickering. "Very funny, Vixen," Silver said as he went to get his uniform and a towel to take an actual shower.

* * *

After Silver got an impromptu shower courtesy of Vixen, Celadon went to see how her teammates were doing after she finished her morning workout. Entering Team SAFR's room, she saw Sunset and Vinyl had not even changed into their uniforms yet. "Shouldn't you two get dressed," Celadon asked as Vinyl removed her headphones.

Sunset and Vinyl looked at Celadon before turning to each other for a second. Vinyl shrugged as she kept listening to her tunes. "Why do we need to put on a uniform? They're optional," Sunset said as she slipped her favorite jacket back on.

Celadon pondered it for a moment, but remembered that she had to clean up and get a new outfit on because her workout clothes were now drenched in sweat. "Very well. I guess that I'll be the only one of us to wear a uniform to classes," Celadon stated as she collected her hairbrush and a bottle from the closest bag. "I'll see you in a bit, girls."

As Celadon walked away, Vinyl seemed to fidget around with her hands. However, Sunset recognized it as Sign Language and figured out what Vinyl was saying. "Wait, she took your what," Sunset asked. Signing to Sunset, Vinyl elaborated further as Sunset paid attention. Standing up and getting to the door, Sunset saw Celadon still in range and called out to her, "Hey, Celadon! You grabbed Vinyl's hair dye by mistake."

Looking at the bottle closer, Celadon noticed that it wasn't her conditioner and read the label. "Huh... 'Spectrum Hair Dye'. That was a close one," Celadon said as she handed the bottle back to Sunset. "So, what IS Vinyl's natural look?"

"Dunno," Sunset commented. "But, I'm sure we'll see if she needs to get some help with it."

"Also, where's Rebecca," Celadon inquired remembering that she never saw the kunoichi in their room.

Suddenly, Rebecca showed up right behind Sunset and announced herself, "I'm right here." With the sudden appearance, both Sunset and Celadon leapt backwards and let out a scream. "What," the ninja asked in response to the glaring girls.

"Rebecca... Please warn a girl when you're being all... ninja-y," Celadon said as she rubbed her temples.

Soon, Azalea rushed out of Team FCSA's dorm with her uniform on. "What's going on!? I heard screaming," she asked as she took up a fighting stance.

"Calm down, Farm Girl," Sunset said as she approached the Cow Faunus. "Rebecca was just being too stealthy." After explanations were given, Sunset and Celadon looked at Azalea's uniform and saw the buttons of her shirt were straining against her chest. "Umm, Azalea..."

"Are you sure you got the correct size, Darling," Celadon asked in concern for her friend.

Azalea admitted, "I'm not actually sure that they gave me the right s-" Before she could finish her sentence, a button popped off of her shirt and went flying. Rebecca swiftly caught it before it nailed anyone in the eye. "...I should just wear something else," Azalea dejectedly said.

"Don't worry, Azalea. I've got it under control," Celadon declared as she dragged Azalea back to the latter's room.

Stammering, Azalea tried to speak up about how it wasn't necessary for Celadon to do that. But, Sunset spoke for her. "Don't you have to get ready for classes in an hour," Team SAFR's leader asked with a smirk.

Gasping, Celadon released Azalea from her grip and rushed back to Team SAFR's dorm to grab what she needed. As the blonde girl ran off, Azalea sighed in relief. "Come on. Let's at least put a sweater on you," Sunset suggested as she opened the door to the Faunus' room.

* * *

After everything was sorted out, the three teams decided to spend the last while before classes getting something to eat. In comparison to the usual Beacon Academy uniforms, several of the group had some sort of customized look to it for their preferences. Cereza wore her locket instead of the ribbon, Layla wore her headpiece, Slate kept his hat on, and Azalea wore a sweater over her outfit because of a few missing buttons on her shirt. Out of Team SLVR, only Rua wore something different by keeping her skull hair clip and fingerless gloves on. Team SAFR decided to go without their school uniforms and the twelve sat together at the same table.

"What classes do we have today anyways," Rua asked as she picked at her plate in boredom.

Lapis put her glass down and answered her teammate's question. "According to all our schedules, we have the same classes starting at nine o'clock. Our first class is 'Introduction to Dust Use' with Professor Camellia," the blue-haired girl explained.

"Considering most of us use Dust in battle, I can see that being an important one," Cereza mentioned as she grabbed a lollipop from her pocket.

"I'm sure that we'll do fine in that class," Sunset reassured a nervous looking Azalea as the former munched on an apple fritter.

Looking down at her plate, Azalea say that it was empty and turned to Sunset. "THAT WAS MY FRITTER, YOU THIEF!"

Shoving the last of it in her mouth quickly, Sunset smirked and ran away from the table to avoid Azalea's reach. "You snooze, you lose, Farm Girl," Sunset shouted before she got to the door. "Maybe you should get a pet rooster to wake you up, HAHAHA!" Sunset taunted the comically enraged Faunus before bolting out the door.

"AFTER HER," Azalea screamed before grabbing an apple to replace her stolen treat. The girl ran out the door with Layla, Vinyl, and Vixen following her. The four girls soon reached the classroom that Sunset was in and Azalea stared down Sunset. "Nowhere to run, doughnut thief."

"Especially because class starts in about 5 minutes," Sunset retorted as she pointed to a clock. The girls all saw that it was 8:55 and other students began to walk into the room. "You win this round, Sunset," Azalea said as she took a seat with Layla and Vinyl.

* * *

After a few minutes of waiting, a lethargic teacher came in the door with thermos and poured herself a cup of tea. She was a short woman with an average figure, light skin, and looked like she desperately needed to either sleep or get some caffeine in her system. She wore a green beanie over her short blue hair, had a pair of khaki pants, and a cardigan over her dress shirt. She yawned and greeted the classroom before taking a sip of her tea. "Good morning, students. I'm Professor Camellia and I will be teaching you kids about Dust."

A couple of whispers about the professor circled the room as she continued to nurse her cup. "She's our teacher?" "She looks like she's about to pass out." "She needs to take a nap or something." "Should we tell someone about this?"

Placing her cup down and ignoring the whispering students, Professor Camellia began her lesson plan. "I'm sure that you all know about what Dust is. But, let's go over it again in case any of you were asleep during those classes before Beacon." Several students looked at her like she was being a hypocrite. "Dust crystals come in four natural primary elements. Fire, Water, Air, and Earth. Combining these with the correct methods allows one to create secondary Elements such as Lightning or Ice," Professor Camellia continued. Taking a sip of her tea, she gradually became more alert and further elaborated on the topic while everyone paid attention for the next while.

"Now then, let's see how many of you use Dust in battle. Raise your hands if you use Dust in your fighting style for elemental attacks," Camellia asked the class. Azalea, Layla, Slate, Sunset, Vixen, Lapis, and Rebecca all raised their hands along with a couple of other students in the room.

"Hmm. Quite a few of you use it," the professor commented. "Alright. Now, who among you use Dust aside from bullets and throwing knives?" A number of hands went back down, but a few stayed up to answer the teacher's question. Azalea, Layla, Sunset, Vixen, and Lapis all kept their hands raised to show that their weapons used a form of Dust. "Interesting. How would some of you like to demonstrate for the class," Professor Camellia asked.

"I'd like to help," Lapis said as she stood up.

"Excellent, Miss Ondine. Now, we just need someone else to assist. How about you, Miss Holstein," the beanie-wearing teacher asked.

"M-me? But, I...," Azalea nervously replied as the teacher called on her.

"Actually, Professor," Layla interrupted with her arm raised. "I'd like to show off my Dust skills in combat."

"Okay then, Miss Carbuncle. You and Miss Ondine will spar for the class to show how well you use Dust," Professor Camellia said. "Go collect your equipment so that we may begin."

* * *

After a few minutes of chatter to kill time, Layla and Lapis returned with their equipment and the two girls even changed into their combat attire. "Okay, students. Pay attention and you might learn something," Professor Camellia instructed before turning to the two girls. "You'll spar until I give the signal to stop. Begin... now."

At the professor's signal, Lapis immediately spun her trident to whip up a gust of wind to send Layla flying backwards. The purple-haired girl rolled to avoid taking damage from her sudden flight, then used her Dust jewelry to create a few bubbles of water and fired them at Lapis. Lapis countered by slashing at the bubbles to pop them before sending out her out Water Dust attack. "How about this," Lapis declared as she created a stream of water to force Layla against the wall. To follow up, Lapis used her trident's Dust crystals to freeze the water and trap Layla.

Lapis smiled at her work, but Layla used her own Fire Dust jewelry to melt the ice and then a large cloud of steam covered the room. "As much as I love a good steam, this makes it a bit difficult to see what's happening," Celadon commented from the audience.

"I agree," Lapis stated as she used her trident to blow away the steam cloud. However, Layla acted quickly and used her Fire Dust again to create a few rings of flame and sent them at Lapis. Surrounding the blue-haired girl's wrists, the flames acted as burning handcuffs that would harm Lapis if she moved her arms from above her.

"That's enough," Professor Camellia said. Listening to her, Layla extinguished the flames and released Lapis. "You two do show remarkable skill in Dust-based combat, but there is still plenty for you all to learn," the teacher lectured. "In fact, we have enough time for another Dust duel if you're quick to get your equipment. Who wants to go next?"

Numerous hands went into the air as students wanted to volunteer for the next duel. Professor Camellia looked over the students who wanted to fight and show their skills. "Hmm... How about you, Miss Kosaku?"

Giggling, Vixen got up and walked up to get her stuff. While leaving, she brushed her tail against Slate's face. "If I can battle against this guy, I'll do it," Vixen said in a flirty tone.

"Very well. Mister Quartz, please go collect your weapons and combat clothes for our the next duel," Professor Camellia said to the cowboy.

* * *

As the two fighters came back with their equipment, Vixen unfolded two steel fans that had Dust crystals embedded in them. "I hope that you can give me a show, cutie," Vixen said with a giggle.

"I think it won't really be a show. Unless you can give me a challenge," Slate retorted as he twirled a revolver before taking aim.

"Ready? ...Begin," Professor Camellia declared.

At the signal, Slate was quick to fire his guns and shot four Wind Dust bullets near Vixen. The projectiles bounced around the room and soon spiraled above the Fox Faunus. However, she was able to counter the attack by spinning around with her fans. The steel weapons released a wave of fire that burnt the bullets away and send embers towards Slate.

Forced to cover his face, Slate was left vulnerable to Vixen's next attack. Rushing forward, the Faunus girl smacked Slate with her burning hot fans and released small waves of fire with each strike. As Slate took the damage from Vixen's attack, she failed to notice Slate move his revolver to aim at her foot. Taking a shot during the combo he was in, Slate fired an Ice Dust bullet at Vixen's leg and managed to immobilize the girl.

With her leg trapped in ice, Vixen used her fans to melt the ice and free herself. However, Slate anticipated this and took aim with his second gun. Pulling the trigger, he sent a bullet at the puddle of water under Vixen's feet and the projectile shocked her with electricity. The water allowed the attack to be even more effective and it weakened Vixen's Aura considerably. Vixen glared at Slate and set her fans ablaze when she unfolded them.

"Enough," Professor Camellia declared before Vixen and Slate did any further damage to each other. As the two students lowered their weapons, the beanie-wearing teacher poured herself another cup of tea. "As you can see, Dust has a variety of use in combat. However, there is ALWAYS more to something than you think," the professor explained. "Next time, we will be covering more than just combat with Dust. Read through the first three chapters of your assigned textbooks and I'll see you all again soon," she said as the bell rang to signal the end of the class.

* * *

A while after leaving their other classes, Team FCSA and Team SLVR met up with each other to chat about their fights with each other during the class with Professor Camellia. "You're really skilled, Lapis," Azalea said to the blue-haired girl.

"Thank you. But, you should volunteer next time," Lapis replied. "I'm sure that you would've done well."

Azalea grabbed her sweater's sleeve and just mumbled to herself. "I'd rather not," the others heard from Azalea. While Lapis and Vixen were confused at the FCSA member's words, Silver and Rua remembered their interactions with Azalea.

Deciding not to bother her with some of Azalea's personal issues, Rua remembered something from earlier. "Doesn't Sunset owe you a doughnut," Rua asked with a smiled as she cracked her knuckles.

"That's right! She owes me an apple fritter," Azalea exclaimed as she began to head back to the cafeteria. "AND SHE'S NOT GETTING AWAY THIS TIME!"

Seeing Azalea running to the building, the others could only stare at what happened. "For a shy girl, she's really stubborn," Layla and Silver said at the same time.

* * *

Azalea ran into the cafeteria to try and find Sunset, but she didn't find her in the building. Searching for Sunset took most of Azalea's lunch break, but she wasn't going to give up. After a while, Azalea finally managed to find Sunset back at her locker. "Hey, Azalea," Sunset greeted until she saw the look in the Faunus' eyes. "You're still mad about this morning?"

"Yes," Azalea exclaimed. "You still owe me a doughnut."

Sighing, Sunset thought of something for a few seconds before speaking to Azalea again. "How about we spar for it? If I win, you let it go for today. If you win, I'll get your team a full box of your choices," she offered. Raising her hand to the other girl, Sunset waited a response from her.

"Deal," Azalea stated as she shook Sunset's hand. Soon, the two girls collected their weapons and went to a large enough area to duel. As they left, Team SLVR and the others saw them and tagged along to see what was going on. Eventually, the three teams arrived at the arena and the fighters prepared themselves. Vinyl saw the preparations and activated the speakers of Rhythm Scratch to play music for the fight.

"Okay, Azalea. Let's fight," Sunset declared as she immediately changed her weapon into its sniper rifle mode and took aim. Acting quickly, Azalea dodged the first few shots and approached Sunset. As the Faunus pulled out Gladion, Sunset changed her rifle into sword mode and prepared to clash weapons. The fiery-haired girl swung her blade to collide with Azalea's baton, but the force of both fighters sent each of their weapons flying away from their hands.

The small audience gasped at the scene before Azalea rushed into battle without her weapon. "Whoa," Rua exclaimed. "Farm Girl's got guts."

"I wouldn't be too surprised," Slate said as he adjusted his hat. "Azalea's a pretty tough girl in her own right."

Unknown to any of the students, Professor Ozpin and Professor Camellia looked at the friendly match from just outside of everyone's view.

Azalea ran up to Sunset and pulled back her fist for a heavy punch. However, Sunset saw this coming and was already in a stance to fight barehanded. Deflecting Azalea's punch, Sunset went in for a few quick punches to her open body before chopping at her neck. "Do you think I was only good with a sword and gun? I studied a variety of battle styles until I found some that could work for me," Sunset explained. "We're not done yet anyway."

"Couldn't agree with you more," Azalea said as she grabbed Sunset's arm and threw the girl onto the ground. As she picked herself up, Sunset felt a something grab at her jacket and was lifted into the air by Azalea. Sunset looked panicked for a moment, but smirked a little as she used her Aura to activate the Fire Dust in her jacket. The material began to light up and soon shot out two flames from Sunset's back, forcing Azalea to drop the girl she was holding above her head.

Standing back up, Sunset looked like she had wings of fire on her back and she smirked at Azalea before the flames moved from her back to her hands. With a set of martial arts motions, Sunset sent fireballs flying towards the Faunus and forced her to dodge. Avoiding flame after flame, Azalea made her way to her baton and grabbed it before returning to a battle stance. "My turn," she declared as she changed the Dust setting on Gladion.

Sunset unleashed a stream of fire at Azalea, but the Faunus used her baton to send out a blast of wind to deflect the flames back to where they came. Seeing the gust of wind blowing her attack back to her, Sunset quickly covered her face to avoid taking too much damage. When she felt the flames dissipate, Sunset uncovered herself and saw that Azalea was nowhere to be seen. "What the hey," she asked to nobody in particular.

Soon, Sunset felt an impact to her stomach and was shocked by electricity coming from nowhere. Grunting in pain, she felt strike after strike, shock after shock, and fell to one knee before she was lifted into the air. "What's going on," she yelled in anger. After being slammed to the ground near her weapon, Sunset got back up and her jacket shined brighter than before. With a primal scream, the girl unleashed a wave of fire that exposed an invisible Azalea. "There you are," Sunset snarled before she grabbed her sword and flaming wings appeared on her back.

"She looks mad," Vixen giggled out as everyone watched Sunset's anger figuratively fuel her Fire Dust attacks.

"This looks like it might get out of hand," Cereza said as she prepared herself to stop the duel if it got too intense.

Sunset charged towards Azalea with her blade, but Azalea changed Gladion's setting again and slammed the baton on the floor. With a ring of mist forming under Sunset, a pillar of steam erupted from the ground and surrounded the enraged girl. When the steam cleared, Sunset was shown to be trapped in a pillar of ice with the makeshift cage melting at her back. Azalea approached the immobilized girl and said only one thing. "You owe Team FCSA breakfast tomorrow."

"Alright-t-t... J-j-just get m-me out of this," Sunset replied as her teeth chattered from her shivering. With a well placed strike, the ice shattered instantly and Sunset staggered to her feet. Azalea helped her friend up and the 'audience' went down to talk with the two of them.

Meanwhile, the two professors spoke to each other. "I see that despite a bit of stage fright in front of other students, Miss Holstein is capable with her Dust skills," Camellia remarked.

"Yes. She just needs to ease out of her comfort zone," Ozpin said as he fiddled with his coffee mug. Looking at the twelve students chatting away with each other and talking about heading into town in a few days, Ozpin smiled at the sight. "And I believe that she will have plenty of support."

* * *

The afternoon came and went for Azalea and her friends, so they eventually decided to hang out with each other and play games. "I'll play my 'Lion Force Paladin' by tributing my monster and give it a 'Burn Saber' to increase its attack power," Lapis declared as she played against Slate in a trading card game. "Not only that, but if I destroy your next monster, its attack power with be inflicted as damage to you."

"Not bad," Slate said to his opponent. "However, it won't do you any good when I summon my Vacuo Gunslinger. With its power, I can inflict enough damage to you to win. Say goodbye to the last 400 points of your health," the cowboy said as he won the match.

"I said I'd play winner," Silver said as he pulled out his personal deck of cards for the game.

"You're on," Slate remarked with a grin on his face.

As the boys got into their game, several of the girls watched their match while the others did their own thing. Azalea was writing a letter to her parents and looked at a picture on her Scroll. Sighing, she put her device away and continued writing. A while later, the horned Faunus girl went outside and headed to the campus mailroom. 'I guess I should mail Mom and Dad. I might be homesick, but at least I can do this,' Azalea thought to herself before getting the postage on her envelope and writing the last details needed to mail her letter back home to Mirabelle.

* * *

 **And with this, the three teams have gotten through their first day at Beacon Academy and several fights have been shown to elaborate on battle styles. This is only the beginning for our twelve heroes and they have other obstacles to overcome before the next semester starts.**

 **For the music playing during Sunset and Azalea's duel, add something you like that would fit. I'm sure you readers would find pretty good battle music for that scene.**

 **Next chapter, the gang will have had spent a while at Beacon and it places them around the time Cardin blackmailed Jaune. We also get some information about a character's home.**

 **Until next time, everyone. WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	5. More Than A Feeling

**Hello, loyal readers and newcomers! I'm WaterDragonMaverick and I'm here with the next chapter of my RWBY Original Character fic, "Sideline: Another Story". For this chapter, it's been about the same amount of time that Team RWBY and JNPR have been at Beacon before Jaune comes clean to Pyrrha about how he got into the school. In this installment, we'll see how well the three teams have adjusted to Beacon and have backstory on a setting that is important to a number of my characters.**

 **Story Time!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my RWBY Original Characters in Team SLVR, Team FCSA, and Team SAFR.**

* * *

It has been quite some time since Azalea had first come to Beacon Academy, but she was adjusting pretty well. Each of her classes were interesting and kept her on her toes at times. For example, despite his 'unique' storytelling, Professor Port had students fight Grimm he caught or help him track them to catch the monsters. And every time that Combat classes were held, Azalea always managed to hold her own. Eventually, everyone heard that the Vytal Festival was approaching and that students from the other kingdoms would join them for classes during the next semester before the Tournament started.

This news excited several members of SLVR, SAFR, and FCSA enough that it was all they talked about during their lunch break. "I'm so ready to take on those other teams! Just let me at 'em," Silver said with his tail actually wagging behind him like an excited puppy.

"Down, boy," Rua remarked with a smirk on her face as she shoved Silver back into his seat. "I wanna fight as much as you, but I'd rather save it for class."

"Speaking of class, we have Doctor Oobleck this afternoon," Lapis said to everyone. "If the lesson plan is correct, then we'll be learning about areas in western Anima." Upon hearing of where she grew up, Azalea turned her head back to Lapis with a hint of intrigue. "I wonder what they were like then and how they are now," Lapis said her thoughts out loud.

"Nerd," Vixen said with a snicker.

"At least she's better than a prankster with secrets to hide," Cereza playfully teased while enjoying a few cherries. Vixen looked slightly nervous at Cereza's mention of the Fox Faunus.

"Everyone has their secrets," Slate stated. "Same with their origins."

After a few more minutes of various topics, the conversation soon looped to Team SAFR. "How's your Semblance been developing, Sunset," Layla asked. Everyone turned to the girl in question and awaited her response as they were unsure of their friend's progress with her newly developed power themselves.

"Actually, I can hear some of your thoughts right now," Sunset answered. "Celadon is worried if her makeup is on right, Silver and Slate are still thinking about the Vytal Festival, and Azalea is feeling a little excited for Doctor Oobleck's class later."

"Impressive," Vinyl said as she fixed her bangs to stay out of her eye.

"Yeah. It is," Sunset remarked before she looked down with a thoughtful look on her face. "I just think that there's more than just mind reading to this. My teachers at Garrison had their own powerful Semblances, but there was more to them than they let on."

Layla put a hand on Sunset's shoulder to comfort her. "Don't worry. We'll figure out everything. That's why we're here at Beacon," the Vacuo girl said. Sunset smiled at that and the group continued to talk the last of their break away.

* * *

Eventually, the group got ready for classes again and headed off to Doctor Oobleck's History class. But as they got there, the group of twelve found trouble in the form Team CRDL, who were ready to pick a fight with them. "Well, looks like we have company to wait with," Cardin said to his teammates.

"Don't even start, Winchester," Slate said as he moved his hat to show his viridian eyes. "We don't want to deal with you."

"Speak for yourself," Silver and Rua remarked as they glared at Team CRDL. The staring contest went on for a few moments until Silver and Rua were dragged to a few seats far away from the other team.

After another minute, other students arrived in the room and took their own seats around the lecture hall. Team RWBY and Team JNPR actually had a few classes with Azalea and her friends, so they were seated around the others. Soon, Bartholomew Oobleck arrived with his usual hyperactive energy and began class. Most of the students who had Professor Camellia and Doctor Oobleck in their schedules agreed that the two were pretty different from each other. While one needed tea to wake up before class started, the other looked and behaved like he needed an intervention for a caffeine addiction.

"Settle down, students! We will be covering a lot today, so I hope that you'll pay attention," the green-haired teacher said to the teenagers in front of him. A few groans were heard scattered around the room while a few were looking forward to the lecture. "Alright, we'll start with..."

* * *

"...and that is how the village was founded. However, there are still claims as to if these details are accurate or not. A few associates of mine have been looking into them, but only one of them has found enough proof to continue her searches," Oobleck continued. By this time, everyone was either asleep, ignoring most of what was happening, or paying attention to the 'gliding' history teacher. Among the students in the former two were Jaune Arc, Team CRDL, and even Rua Amaranth. Vinyl was listening to her music, but managed to pay attention to the lecture by reading Oobleck's lips. Everyone who knew Vinyl thought that she had to have some amazing skill to follow along to the rapid-talking Huntsman.

"Okay then. We'll now move onto our next topic," Oobleck said to everyone as he slapped the map behind him and pointed to a spot on the continent of Anima. "Who can tell me about the village of Mirabelle," he asked. Immediate upon hearing the name of the town, Azalea bolted up and raised her hand in excitement. Seeing and hearing the change in the shy student, Oobleck was ecstatic. "Miss Holstein! Contributing to class! This is excellent! Care to tell us what you know about Mirabelle?"

Azalea nodded and cleared her throat before beginning her explanation. "Long before the Great War, a clan of Faunus decided that they had enough of the discrimination against them and they left their homes to find settlement elsewhere in Anima. Soon, they came across an abandoned village near a plot of land that was perfect for setting up a farm. The clan's matriarch decided that the Faunus and their families would repair the village and start a farm," Azalea stated with enthusiasm. All of her friends were surprised at the girl's knowledge, but continued listening to the Faunus.

"Eventually, their new home was renamed 'Mirabelle' as more people moved into the area and helped with either repairing the town or working at 'Plum Blossom Farms' with the clan's matriarch, Diana Demeter Holstein. As time passed for Mirabelle and the Holstein clan, the village became well know across western Anima and even eastern Sanus," Azalea continued. Everyone was intrigued by the fact that Azalea said that her own ancestor founded a village from before the Great War. "During the tension of the Great War, Mirabelle and Plum Blossom Farms became its own sanctuary for Faunus and those who wished to not follow the Emperor of Mistral's decree of abolishing self-expression. And during the war itself, the locations were a safe area that all sides took refuge in before heading back to their own sides."

Azalea's euphoric face while giving her own 'lecture' about her hometown was a sight that her friends and Doctor Oobleck were glad to see. "Plum Blossom Farms itself is a successful business that supplies food to a number of locations throughout its surrounding areas. The farm even lends horses for traveling Huntsmen and others to get around easier," Azalea added before returning to the topic of Mirabelle. "Anyways, because of the origins of Mirabelle, it is one of the locations in Anima with little-to-no discrimination against the Faunus species." As Azalea finished, most of the room applauded her presentation and Oobleck smiled gently at her.

"Excellent! Just excellent, Miss Holstein! If I didn't know any better, I would say that you were the teacher today," Doctor Oobleck congratulated the Faunus girl. "Because of the detail in your oral presentation, I will be excluding you from your assigned readings today. You may enjoy an afternoon off, if you wish."

Most of the room either groaned at the fact that Azalea got out of having homework or they congratulated the girl for a job well done. Unfortunately, four boys just glared at the girl with annoying smirks on their faces. "Tsk. Leave it to the dairy cow to know about a farming town," Cardin commented loud enough for everyone to hear him.

At his words, Azalea froze and stared off into the distance. She heard what he said and kept repeating in her head with two words getting the most emphasis. " _Leave it to the dairy cow to know about a farming town. Leave it to the dairy cow... Dairy Cow... Dairy Cow... Dairy Cow..._ " As the words repeated in her mind, Azalea's eyes filled with tears and started to spill over. Vinyl was the first to see Azalea's face and removed her sunglasses to see the crying girl.

Doctor Oobleck saw the sobbing girl and slowly approached her. "Miss Holstein? Are you alright? Azalea," he asked cautiously before the girl he was speaking to began to make a sound. Wailing at the top of her lungs, Azalea bawled her eyes out and used her Semblance to turn invisible before she was heard running out of the room at full speed.

"Azalea! Wait," Sunset and Layla said before they ran after the weeping girl with Slate and Vinyl following behind them.

Everyone who stayed behind was shocked to see Azalea act like that, except for a few people who were laughing harshly instead. "Seriously? She's explaining things like she's the teacher one minute, then she bolts off crying the next? HAHAHAHAHA," Cardin said before he and Team CRDL laughed.

Several students were baring their teeth or glaring at how harsh Team CRDL was acting, but one reacted much more violently than the others and nobody could see what happened until it was too late. In a flash of purplish-red light, Rua Amaranth appeared above Cardin and slammed his face into his desk before she kicked the rest of his team in their faces. "WHY DON'T YOU SHUT YOUR DAMN MOUTH, YOU PIECE OF SHIT BULLY," Rua screamed with a look and tone of pure righteous fury.

Cardin growled as he pushed himself back up off his desk and turned to viciously glare at Rua. The two stared each other down like wild animals before the next move was made. With a swift punch, Rua slugged Cardin in the face and he recoiled in pain. As the bully removed his hand from his eye, Rua rushed him and grabbed Cardin's head to deliver a knee strike to his nose. Before the assault could continue any further, Oobleck intervened by grabbing both Cardin and Rua by the arms. "That's enough. The two of you are going to be punished for these actions," Oobleck sternly stated. "Your insensitive comments," the teacher said to Cardin before turning to a snarling Rua. "And your violent outburst. Detention! Both of you are to stay after class and do what say until I allow you to leave."

Both students glared at each other while Oobleck turned to the rest of his class. "I believe this would be an appropriate time to dismiss you all. Pages 21 to 42 in your textbooks. I want a summary of a village of your choice on my desk when I see you for next class. Run along students," he instructed to everybody. Just as Team SLVR was leaving with their friends, Team RWBY, and Team JNPR, Oobleck spoke to them again. "Oh, and please keep an eye out for Miss Holstein. She... seems to have taken this badly, to say the least."

"That's an understatement. We need to find her," Yang Xiao Long said as she and the others left to either do their assignments or search for Azalea.

* * *

"Azalea! Wait," called out a familiar voice, but the Faunus girl ignored it and kept running. Azalea kept hidden with her Semblance and managed to avoid being discovered by her friends. As the sound of footsteps faded away from her location, the effect of Azalea's Semblance ended and revealed the crying girl. Curled up in a ball against the wall, Azalea could only let her tears fall off her face.

"I'm not one... I'm not a dairy cow...," Azalea sobbed to herself. Because her heritage, Azalea's body matured faster during puberty and it made her the target of most kids her age when she left Mirabelle for classes at Sanctuary Academy. All of the taunting voices she knew as a young teenager were all she was hearing now. In Azalea's childhood, she absolutely hated being called 'dairy cow' because of it not only an insult to her, but also to the entire maternal side of her family.

Minutes passed for Azalea as she cried to herself, but she soon found that she was no longer alone. Looking up, she saw three faces that appeared periodically around Beacon. The first was a tall girl wearing black sunglasses and a beret that looked like she was more into fashion than combat. The second was a Rabbit Faunus that looked like she had gone through similar troubles before. And the third person was a giant of a boy that looked seven feet tall and seemed to give off a feeling of protection. "You alright, kid," the girl with the beret asked as the Faunus helped Azalea to her feet.

"N-n-no," sniffling and faltering, Azalea could barely answer the question. "I'm n-not."

"What happened," the Rabbit Faunus asked with an accent.

Hesitating, Azalea tried to give an answer to the girls. "I just... ran away from class."

"Why would you do that," the large young man inquired.

"S-somebody called me a slur I hate," Azalea managed to say.

When she answered, Azalea saw the Rabbit Faunus lower her head and the other two had angry looks on their faces. "Velvet gets way too many comments like that because of her heritage," the fashionable girl said. "But, we try and help deal with those kinds of problems."

"Coco, you kicked the last few boys who did that in their groins and they couldn't walk straight for two days," 'Velvet' said to her friend.

"They deserved it. They're lucky I didn't tell Yatsuhashi to use them as training partners," Coco retorted. "Isn't that right, Yatsu," she asked the giant of a teenager.

"Nobody hurts my team on my watch," Yatsuhashi said with an intimidatingly deep voice.

Azalea smiled sadly and looked down before speaking again. "But, I've been dealing with this since I was a kid. I can handle this on my own," she said with more tears falling from her face.

* * *

"Where is she," Sunset said as she searched the dorms for the second time. After Azalea's outburst, Sunset ran after the Faunus with Layla, Slate, and Vinyl. The four decided to split up to search for the girl, but none of them were having any luck. Soon, Sunset's Scroll got a message from Vinyl that said 'She's not at the training hall or locker rooms'. Sighing, the redhead slumped onto the floor and messaged Vinyl back about where she checked.

"She couldn't have gotten far. She says that her Semblance only lasts a minute or two," Sunset thought out loud. "Well, I should check near the classrooms again. Maybe I missed her," she said to herself and headed off.

As she got closer to her destination, Sunset thought of something. 'Maybe if I use MY Semblance,' she pondered before clearing her mind and searched for Azalea. After a few moments, Sunset couldn't hear anything and sighed in defeat. "I'm still learning how to use this power anyway. It's not like I can master it in a week," Sunset said to herself before she felt something on her face. Bringing a hand to her eye and cheek, Sunset felt something wet and looked to the sky. Seeing it was a clear and sunny day, Sunset was confused as to why water was on her face before she felt something else. Overcome with a feeling of sorrow, Sunset was freaking out over everything that was happening and began to tear up.

"What's going on? Why am I feeling so horrible? Why am I crying," Sunset asked herself. Before she could ask another thing, Sunset felt something nearby and walked in that direction. As she reached a hallway near an empty lecture hall, she heard a few voices talking about 'nobody hurting their team'. Turning a corner, Sunset found three upperclassmen talking with Azalea and trying to cheer her up.

Relieved to see her friend okay, Sunset approached the four while keeping her gaze focused on Azalea. "Azalea. I'm so glad that I found you. Everyone was looking for you after that thing in Oobleck's class," she said to the horned Faunus.

"You know this girl," Coco asked Azalea as she looked at Sunset. "Nice jacket, kid," she complimented the newcomer.

"Yeah. She's one of my friends. I guess that we should head back. I'll see you around," Azalea said to Coco, Velvet, and Yatsuhashi. Walking with Sunset by her side, Azalea still looked down at her feet while the two headed to their dorm rooms. "You didn't have to look for me. People said that kind of stuff all the time back in Sanctuary," Azalea explained to Sunset as the latter messaged the others on her Scroll. "I dealt with it alone and I can deal with it now."

"I don't think so. I might not have been social back at my old school, but you're my friend. I'm going to help you when you're upset," Sunset countered.

Azalea wiped tears from her eyes as she smiled at Sunset. "How'd you find me anyway?"

"It's really weird. I was trying to use my Semblance to hear your thoughts, but it wasn't working. Then, I felt something dripping down my cheek and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. And I just followed this strange feeling until I found you with those guys," the redhead began to explain. "It's just too strange. Seriously, why is my Semblance so confusing," Sunset said with an increasingly irritated tone.

"I know you're trying to learn, but you don't need to get more riled up than a Grimm in one of Professor Port's cages," Azalea said to her friend.

"I'm not angry about my Semblance. But, something's ticking me off right now," Sunset explained before something appeared in front of them. In a flash of purplish-red light, Rua was in front of the two girls and grumbled to herself as she clenched her fists. "Rua? Are you okay," Sunset cautiously asked.

"No, I'm not okay! Because of that piece of Grimm bait saying what he did to Azalea, I have to be in detention with him," Rua snarled out. "Cardin Winchester can go suck a d-"

"Why do you have detention," Sunset and Azalea interrupted with a question.

"BECAUSE I WAS BEATING HIS STUPID FACE IN," Rua practically screamed through the courtyard. Her voiced echoed through the area and drew attention to the trio of girls. "HE SHOULDN'T BE A RACIST SON OF A-"

"Okay, that's enough out of you," Sunset acted quickly and covered Rua's mouth to make her stop screaming. "Try dealing with your anger some other way."

"Speaking of, Rua and you were both angry like that. And just after you found me," Azalea mentioned to Sunset. "Could your Semblance be why?"

Thinking about it for a minute, Sunset did feel sad and angry when she was near Azalea and Rua respectively. And the first instance was from trying to find the former in an emotional state. "I think you might be right, Lea," Sunset said.

"Today's been eventful, hasn't it," Rua dryly commented. "Azalea gets out of homework for today before she runs off crying, I get detention for beating up the jerk that insulted her, and Sunset learns more about her powers. Whoo-hoo," she sarcastically cheered.

Sunset didn't need to use her Semblance to figure out that Rua was still mad. The latter's anger would probably last as long as one of Professor Port's anecdotes about his youth, so Sunset had to do something about that. However, Sunset could still sense Azalea's lingering sadness from earlier and had to help with that a bit. "So, wanna head into the city for ice cream or something," Sunset asked the two girls.

"Yes," Azalea and Rua immediately answered.

"Well, let's see if anyone else wants to grab some," Sunset said with a smile as she messaged the others on her Scroll.

* * *

After messaging the others, the ones who came joined Sunset and the girls to a local frozen yogurt shop in Vale called 'Magnolia's' for a treat. All of Team FSCA was there, but Rua was the only member of SLVR in the shop at the moment because the others were either studying or training. As for Team SAFR, Rebecca opted to stay behind to catch up on her training while Vinyl and Celadon joined Sunset. "Should we bring something back for the others," Celadon asked as she added some cookie crumbs to her dish.

"I say we should. Vinyl says this place is great," Sunset said before tasting a spoonful of her fro-yo. "And it IS," she exclaimed in happiness at the flavor.

As everybody sat together, they soon noticed that Azalea had the largest helping out of the eight of them. "That's a lot of yogurt, Azalea. You sure you're okay," Layla asked with caution.

"I agree with Layla, darling. Are you alright," Celadon inquired.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah... I'm fine. It's nothing," Azalea tried to reassure them. However, Sunset just raised an eyebrow at her and crossed her arms. "It's just... This reminds me about home too much," Azalea admitted.

"How so," Cereza asked as she took a bite of her frozen treat.

Azalea sighed before explaining what she meant. "Whenever I was upset about being bullied at Sanctuary Academy, my mom and dad would usually take me to my favorite ice cream parlor in Mirabelle. I guess all the constant visits made ice cream and fro-yo my own personal comfort food. So, just being here without them around is just..."

"You're just homesick, aren't you," Sunset summarized.

"Darling, everyone gets homesick when they're away for a while," Celadon explained.

"Yeah. I miss my mom back in Vacuo," Layla said as she hugged Azalea.

"Same with my folks," Slate said as he adjusted his hat. Azalea smiled at all of her friends trying to cheer her up and continued having her dish of frozen yogurt. "By the way, that's a LOT of what you have," Slate commented after getting a better look at Azalea's cup. Everybody turned to see that it was the largest out of all of them all.

Azalea was embarrassed by all the looks she got from her friends. "It's comfort food. And we're warriors in training. Sunset eats a lot, too," the Faunus girl commented as she nervously took another bite.

"Yeah. But, I'm sure that YOU eat more than I do. I wouldn't be surprised if your figure was a result of your eating habits," Sunset retorted. "Um, uh... No offense," she said awkwardly after realizing she might have accidentally insulted Azalea.

"None taken," Azalea reassured her friend about her comment. "My family cooks a lot anyways. You would all like the farm. My parents would be happy to meet everyone."

"We would love to meet them for ourselves, Darling," Celadon said. "Perhaps when we have the chance in the future." The group were soon talking about all sorts of things while they enjoyed their time at Magnolia's.

* * *

Back at Beacon Academy, a few students were not enjoying their time after classes ended. Cardin returned to his room after serving detention, but he was remembering what happened earlier with Rua Amaranth. "That shrimp thinks she can do that to me," Cardin muttered to himself as his teammates listen in. "Okay, guys. We've got some planning to do. We're not going to let that runt from earlier walk all over us."

* * *

 **Hope you all liked the chapter. I really wanted to show off the background of Azalea's home for the story and I also thought this would help show off some details of other characters as well.**

 **What does Cardin have planned for Rua? Will this end up being something like Jaune and the Rapier Wasps or something else entirely? Find out next time!**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out.**


	6. Fragment Hunter

**WaterDragonMaverick here! Time for the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". After Rua got into a fight with Cardin during Oobleck's class, Cardin wants revenge for that. We'll see if Rua can deal with Cardin or if the bully wins this one.**

 **We'll also see some more of the laid-back and comedic sides of my characters. Think of this chapter as half RWBY and half RWBY Chibi with the more lighthearted stuff.**

 **Get In Gear!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters in Team SLVR, Team FCSA, and Team SAFR.**

* * *

It had been quiet for Azalea, Sunset, and their friends after Azalea talking about Mirabelle in Doctor Oobleck's class. Eventually, Rua's time in detention was served and she was spending time with the others in the library. "Stupid Cardin Winchester," Rua muttered to herself.

"Should you really hold a grudge like this," Lapis asked as she looked up from her book. "He didn't even insult _you_. He made Azalea cry."

"I just can't stand bullies like him," Rua said as she sat in a chair. "Reminds me too much of my childhood."

"Yeah, same here," Silver said as he looked up from his card game against Rebecca. "But, if I know people like Cardin, he won't give up easily when their pride took a hit."

"Or several to his stupid face," Rua commented in a deadpan tone.

Azalea turned from where she was writing another letter to her parents to face Rua. "Still, you should be careful. A few bullies from Sanctuary Academy always picked on me and they never stopped until I went to Beacon instead of Haven Academy," Azalea explained.

"Anyways, let's just go to classes and enjoy ourselves until that ruffian decides to retaliate," Celadon said as she filed her nails. "I, for one, want to enjoy our Saturday afternoon in peace."

Unknown to most of the group, Cardin's teammates were spying on the twelve while their leader was still in detention. "Okay, guys. We just need to keep an eye on them and report anything to Cardin," Russel Thrush said to his teammates. "We'll find out a few things about the others too."

* * *

"I'm telling you, Rua," Vixen said to her teammate in their dorm room the next day. "I can help you mess with Team CRDL if they want to get you back for what you did."

"As much fun as a prank war sounds, I don't think I want to do that," Rua replied. Picking up her Scroll, Rua chose to play a game on it with Silver as her opponent. "I'd rather deal with them myself," Rua explained.

"I don't think that would be a good idea either, Rua," Lapis said as she applied some moisturizer. "It'll just become a cycle of vengeance between you and them. I think you should probably go to Professor Goodwitch or somebody else."

"As if Team CRDL would listen to them," Silver said as he made his character perform an elaborate combo attack. "We should just let this play out until the right time. Besides, we're going into the city today with Team FCSA and Team SAFR."

"Yeah. Maybe some time away from the school will help you forget about Cardin," Lapis agreed.

Rua only rolled her eyes and sighed before speaking up again. "Okay. Let's do that," she said before shutting off her Scroll when she and Silver each won a round. Leaving their room, Team SLVR left for the city of Vale to meet with their friends. However, Team CRDL started following them a little bit after they reached the courtyard.

* * *

Meeting at Magnolia's, the three teams all got something to eat and began to discuss a few things. "What should we call ourselves," Layla asked as she sat down next to Cereza and Vixen.

"Beg pardon," Slate questioned as he adjusted his hat.

"I mean, what should we call the twelve of us as a single group," Layla elaborated. "Teams SAFR, FCSA, and SLVR are too much of a mouthful in conversation."

"Yeah. It's annoying that way," Rua said as she leaned back in her chair. "What would we be called?"

Layla put a finger to her chin and looked up in thought. "Hmm... I have no idea. Wait, I think I have something. What about 'Soaring Stars'?"

"Sounds like a bad reality TV show," Sunset said as she munched on a few cookie pieces.

"Oh! 'Wolf Pack' sounds awesome," Silver exclaimed as he stood up with his tail wagging behind him.

"I think that's taken by every other Wolf Faunus, Silver," Rua snarked at her team leader with a smile. Silver pouted as he slumped his head onto the table.

"I think 'Tricksters' could work," Vixen suggested as she brushed her tail against Lapis' face.

"Absolutely not," Lapis immediately shot down the name idea as she pushed Vixen's tail away from her.

"I believe that the name 'Geode Charm' would be marvelous," Celadon said as she spread her arms above her head.

Rebecca stared at her teammate and shook her head. "Hmm. 'Night Blades' could work," the ninja suggested to everyone's surprise.

"No. I say we call ourselves 'Umbra Brood'," Cereza suggested as she adjusted her glasses.

"Sounds like a cult," Slate and Rua both said to Cereza in the same deadpan voice.

While everyone was suggesting ideas, Azalea and Vinyl were silent during the whole thing. The latter was listening to her headphones and Azalea could hear some of the lyrics from the current song. "We are just fragments and pieces~ We are controlling the game~ Don't even know all our secrets~ When it's all over we all will pay~"

"How about 'Fragment Hunter'," Azalea suggested hesitantly. Thinking it over, everyone agreed that was a good name for the group.

"Huh... Sounds like the name of a band," Sunset mentioned to everyone.

"It kind of does," Rua and Silver said as they thought about the name of the group.

Vinyl jumped to her feet and declared to the others, "WE SHOULD START A BAND! It would be awesome, you guys!" This sudden excitement surprised everyone because Vinyl was normally laconic and taciturn. "Come on, dudes! I know the perfect place to go next," Vinyl announced as she literally dragged Azalea and Sunset outside by the arms.

As the others left with them, Team CRDL saw them leave Magnolia's from a café across the street. "Still nothing," Russel said as the four boys observed their targets. "Hey, wouldn't it be easier to have Jaune help us like with your homework, Cardin?"

"He's too busy with a few papers today," Cardin explained. "Come on, boys. We're following them."

* * *

After heading down a few blocks from Magnolia's, Vinyl brought everyone to a music store called 'Electric Rhapsody'. Apparently, Vinyl was well-known by the store's workers and the owner greeted the entire group when Vinyl entered the building. The group looked around the establishment for a while, but everyone still had the same question on their minds. "Are you serious about all of us starting a band, Vinyl," the eleven others asked with varied expressions.

"Not all of us," Vinyl said as she said as she looked over some guitars. "Just whoever can play an instrument or sing. Besides, this would be fun to do!"

Lapis spoke up first and announced, "Well, I can sing. Anyone else?"

"Right here," Layla and Celadon replied as they raised their hands.

"Me. I play guitar, too," Sunset said as she looked at a new guitar on display.

"Well, me and my mom sing back home. But, I don't feel comfortable at the front," Azalea said as she rubbed her arm.

Slate placed his hat on Azalea's head and said, "I play bass. Who else can play guitar and stuff?"

Rua and Silver said that they could learn how to play something, but Vinyl's attention was on a drum set in the back of the store. Vinyl pushed Azalea over to the kit and Celadon caught on. "Azalea, darling. Try playing the drums," the blonde girl explained.

Vinyl selected a song from her music library while Azalea tested the drums. Soon, she playing the drums in time to the song after a few beginner errors. As she played, Azalea smiled and was enjoying herself with the others. Soon, Rua and Silver took their turns at the drum kit and proved they had what it took to be drummers.

"You know, I thought that you two would have played the banjo and the fiddle," Rua playfully joked to Slate and Azalea.

"That's a stereotype and I find it annoying," Azalea said in response. "But, yeah. My mom and aunt taught me how to play them, too."

As the group was still talking and checking out instruments, Vinyl headed to the cashier and paid for several things with her debit card. "It's official! We're starting a band," Vinyl declared as she came back to the teams. "Let's go! We have other stuff to do while they deliver the stuff to our dorms."

"Hold up," Cereza interrupted. "How is it that you can pay for all the stuff if it's this expensive," she asked Vinyl as she pointed to a pricey quality keyboard that Celadon was looking over.

Vinyl pulled out her Scroll and brought up a video of herself performing as a DJ at a club. "My gigs pay a lot," she said as she put her headphones back on her ears. As she danced out of the front door, the new band followed and went to enjoy the rest of their day.

"This isn't getting us anywhere," Sky Lark said to the other members of Team CRDL as they followed the twelve for the next few minutes.

"Yeah. It's not," Cardin said as he kept spying on Teams SLVR, FCSA, and SAFR. "Okay. We'll go with a different plan. We'll try and get the information out of the others. I'm sure that one of them will give us something to use."

* * *

After spending a fun day together, the newly christened 'Fragment Hunter' group reached the dorms to see that they had several instruments waiting in their rooms. "Sweet! This is going to be fun," Silver said as he checked out the guitar Vinyl got for him.

"Well, you enjoy your new gear. I'm going to get some training in," Rua said as she stretched her back and cracked her knuckles. "I'll see you at dinner or when I run out of practice dummies. Probably the second." With that said, Rua teleported out of the room and left the others on their own.

"Somebody want to go check on her," Cereza asked as she put her book down. "I'm sure that she could use a training partner anyway."

Everyone looked at each other until all eyes were on the rest of Team SLVR. "Okay. We'll go check on her. Besides, we could use the training," Silver said as he placed the guitar down on its stand. "Come on, girls."

A few minutes after Silver, Lapis, and Vixen left, the others heard a loud banging on the door. Slate got up to see who it was, but Sunset grabbed his arm. "Wait a second. I feel something behind the door," she warned. Cautiously, Slate approached the door and was ready to see who it was.

Opening it, everyone saw that Team CRDL was in front of the door with arrogant smirks on their faces. "What do you want, Winchester," Slate asked as he kept his hand on the door.

"What? Can't a guy and his team get to know their classmates," Cardin said with a fake-looking smile as he walked into the room and stood near Azalea. With the bully next to her like he was, Azalea tensed up and hugged herself. Slate and the others saw this and immediately went to her protection.

"You're not welcome here," Slate said as he stood between Cardin and Azalea.

"And why not," Cardin asked as his teammates stood next to him.

Slate looked at all the girls before turning back to the bully. "You're a racist jerk who has no respect for Faunus students," Slate said as he stared Cardin in the eyes.

"You barely pay attention in class because you're a stubborn dunce," Rebecca added as she suddenly appeared next to Russel Thrush and startled him.

"You're a ruffian of a bully who's been picking on several students since your first week here," Celadon stated as she stood next to Slate.

"Your team is nothing but cowards if you haven't confronted Rua already," Cereza harshly said to the four intruding boys.

"You're a terrible person overall and nobody likes you," Layla said to Cardin as she and Vinyl placed a comforting hand on Azalea's back.

As Team CRDL took in the comments, Cardin looked like he was going to break his jaw with how hard he was clenching his teeth. "I think your dentist might not be happy with how you're reacting to this," Sunset remarked with a smirk on her face.

As Cardin growled in anger, Slate turned to the door and kept it open. After a few seconds of tension and silence, footsteps could be heard coming down the hall towards the group. "What's going on here," Professor Goodwitch asked as she and Professor Ozpin stopped to check inside the room.

"Team CRDL was harassing us again, Professor," Cereza explained as she stepped forward to speak with Glynda.

"All because Cardin is still holding a grudge against Rua. They already served detention for what they did, but he's not leaving us alone," Celadon elaborated.

"Perhaps there's another solution," Professor Ozpin explained. "I'm sure that an official sparring match will settle anything between Team CRDL and Rua Amaranth. Where is she?" Azalea stood up and hesitatingly explained that Rua was training and the rest of Team SLVR was with her. "That makes things a bit easier. I'm sure that it will be good training for the Vytal Festival as well."

Glynda tapped away at her Scroll to schedule a match for the two teams. "There. Team SLVR and Team CRDL now have a match planned for tomorrow," she said before turning to Team CRDL. "I suggest that you four get prepared for your match tomorrow afternoon."

"That's one way to kick off a Monday," Vinyl said with a snicker.

Team CRDL just glared at the other eight teenagers and left to get rested for the fight. Glynda walked off to keep an eye on the four boys while they returned to their dorm, but Professor Ozpin stayed behind to speak with the others. "I heard about why Miss Amaranth and Mister Winchester got detention from Doctor Oobleck," Ozpin stated as he turned to Azalea. "She did a noble thing by defending you like she did. Even if it was uncalled for."

"I just hope that Cardin will stop after getting a chance to actually fight Rua," Azalea said in concern.

"We'll have our answer tomorrow," Ozpin stated as he began to walk out the door. "You should all get some rest, too. There will be more than just Team CRDL and Team SLVR fighting," the professor advised as he closed the door behind him.

* * *

Monday was pretty slow for most of the students at Beacon, but word had spread around the campus that Team CRDL was going to fight Team SLVR that afternoon. With that news, everyone who knew of them was ready to see what would happen between the two teams. "Looks like this will be good," Nora Valkyrie said as she sat down next to Lie Ren and Vinyl Aurum in the stands. "Let's see Cardin get what's coming to him!"

"Couldn't agree with you more," Sunset replied as she sat down next to Azalea and Layla.

Soon, Glynda Goodwitch arrived to inform the class about who was fighting. "Students. I'm sure that you're all aware of the rumors about who's fighting today. Let me assure you that it is true that today's match is between Team CRDL and Team SLVR," she explained. "This battle will hopefully be an example of teaching teamwork and how the team matches in the Vytal Festival will go."

Team SLVR and Team CRDL arrived in the middle of the battlefield to stare each other down. Cardin smirked at Rua and she scowled back at him. "The match will go until I give the signal or when all of one side has their Aura taken down into the red," Glynda instructed the eight teenagers. "Understand?" The combatants acknowledged their teacher and readied their weapons for the fight. "Begin when you're ready," Professor Goodwitch said as she stepped away from the teams.

Starting the battle, Lapis twirled her trident to build up speed and unleashed a furious gust of wind to try forcing Team CRDL back. However, they were quick enough to either anchor themselves during the attack or hide behind one of their teammates. Going with a counterattack, Dove Bronzewing used his sword to fire bullets at Lapis while the rest of Team CRDL went to attack Team SLVR. Before the bullets could hit their target, Rua raised her shield and blocked every shot that came at Lapis.

After the ranged attack ended, Rua jumped in the air and her shield unfolded to reveal large blades emerging from it. Throwing the newly transformed shuriken at Dove, Rua forced him to dodge and Lapis began to battle against him while she retrieved her weapon. Bronzewing slashed away at Lapis, but she was able to deflect most of his strikes and eventually caught the blade between her trident's prongs. As they struggled to get the other to release their weapons, Dove punched at Lapis with his free hand and knocked her back. With his opponent dazed from the sudden hit, Dove moved in to continue his assault before he was struck with a fireball from Vixen.

"Gotta keep an eye on everything," Vixen taunted as she turned to an approaching Russel Thrush. He began his attack on her by leaping at her and spinning in the air with his daggers ready. Vixen nimbly dodged the 'buzzsaw' attempt and retaliated by releasing a wave of fire at Russel. Hit by the flames, Russel rolled back onto the ground and rushed at the Fox Faunus with his daggers. Both fighters used their weapons with skill and precision to block each strike they attempted on the other, but neither could land a clean hit. "This is pretty fun," Vixen said as she jumped backward to prepare her next plan of attack. "How about a game," she asked as a second Vixen appeared next to her.

Russel was surprised at how there was more than one Vixen, but he gripped at his daggers and prepared to attack the new one. With his first swing, the copy of Vixen vanished and Russel fell flat on his face because of the illusion tricking him. Getting back up, he saw and heard multiple copies of Vixen laughing at him while they were scattered around the battlefield. Sky and Cardin saw the swarm of Vixen Kosaku and began to attack all of them with their weapons. After a few seconds, the copies all disappeared and the real Vixen was on the far side of the arena with her fans burning brightly. Throwing fireballs at the three members of Team CRDL, Vixen was able to distract them from Silver and Rua's next attack.

Silver swung his customized chainsaw to try and hit Cardin, but Sky managed to block the attack with his halberd. The engine of Silver's chainsaw roared as he began to aggressively attack again at Sky while Rua teleported behind Cardin and kicked him in the back of his head. Recovering from the attack, Cardin swung his mace and tried to hit Rua as she blocked the attack. The impact from the swing forced Rua a few feet backward, but she was still standing after that and repositioned her shield. Holding it with both arms, Rua separated the weapon in two and the blades unfolded to twin arm blades. "Bring it," Rua shouted as she raised her arm blades toward Cardin.

Cardin sneered at Rua and charged at her with his mace raised above his head. Deflecting the strike, Rua followed up her attack by delivering a series of jabs and hooks to Cardin's face and chest. After that, she grabbed at the dazed warrior and kneed him in the stomach and groin. As he recoiled in pain from the attacks, Rua was ready to finish the bully when she heard Dove's sword fire more shots at her. Bringing her blades together, Rua quickly reformed her shield and defended herself from the bullets. However, Russel and Dove rushed toward Rua and kept her on the defensive by constantly striking at her shield and alternating who hit her.

Silver and Sky were ready to attack again when one of Dove's bullets flew past Silver's head and barely missed him. Distracted by the bullet, Silver was left open to Sky's next string of attacks and was forced back. With a change in his grip and a fluid swing of his wrist, Silver unfolded the guide bar of his chainsaw into a whip made from the newly extended chain. Swinging the whip, he was able to keep Sky at bay and eventually managed to wrap the chain around the halberd. Sky tried to disarm Silver of his weapon by pulling back, but the Wolf Faunus countered that by revving the engine of his weapon and making the chain vibrate. Startled by the chainsaw still being active as a whip, Sky was disarmed and was soon knocked out of the fight when Silver delivered a punch to his jaw.

Rua was struggling under the combo attacks from Russel and Dove, but still managed to stay in the fight. Russel was ready to attack again, but he got struck by a blast of water and was immediately frozen when he hit the ground. Looking up as much as he could, Lapis was seen spinning her trident before turning back to Dove. Cardin saw what was happening and Silver was attacking him in wolf form. Cardin growled as he slammed his mace on the ground and released explosions towards Team SLVR. The blasts from Cardin had separated Team SLVR from each other and he went to attack Lapis while Dove changed targets to Vixen. Lapis tried to block the oncoming attacks, but Cardin's strength had him easily overwhelming her and soon knocked her out of the battle.

Vixen tried to use her illusions of doppelgangers again, but Dove was able to cut them down or shoot at them in order for them fade away and reveal Vixen's location. Vixen sent out a blast of fire to try and deal more damage to Dove, but he was able to deflect them with his sword before striking down the Fox Faunus with a strong swing. "My turn," Silver shouted as he charged at Dove as a wolf. Quickly transforming back to normal, Silver managed to distract Dove and tackled him to the ground. As Dove got back up, Silver adjusted his footing and revealed that his boots had hidden knives in them. Kicking at Dove, he managed to knock the swordsman out of the fight when the latter's Aura dropped down enough.

Cardin saw that Rua and Silver were the only two members of Team SLVR remaining and prepared to fight the both of them. Silver pulled out his chainsaw again as Cardin began his assault against the Faunus. The two traded swings with their weapons and kept the other on his toes until they clashed and Silver's chainsaw was being blocked by the shaft of Cardin's mace. Pushing Silver back a little, Cardin followed up with a punch to the head and dazed the Wolf Faunus enough to start focusing on Rua when she began her attack.

Throwing punches at Cardin, Rua was able to start chipping away at his Aura until he started to counter. Swinging his mace, Cardin hit the ground after Rua dodged out of the way and he released a few explosive blasts before trying to hit Rua again. Thinking fast, Rua began to teleport around Cardin whenever he attempted to land a hit and she started to deliver quick blows as she appeared around the bully. After several strikes from different angles, Cardin was clenching his fist and started to grind his teeth before Silver managed to land a palm strike from below him. "You do have the two of us to deal with now," Silver stated as Rua teleported next to her leader and got ready to fight again.

Cardin only growled as he went to attack to attack Silver, but his swing was blocked by Rua's shield and Silver used his bladed boots to counterattack. With a few kicks, Silver was able to push Cardin back and Rua followed through with a strong bash from her shield. The force of the shield bash sent Cardin further back and he glared at his opponents before they continued fighting. As Cardin began to attack Rua with his mace and a few punches, Silver used his chainsaw's whip form to grab at the mace and revved the engine to vibrate the chain. Disarmed of his mace, Rua and Silver began to work together to continue attacking Cardin. After several coordinated punches and kicks, Rua teleported behind Cardin as Silver was about to throw another punch at the bully's face. Acting quickly, Rua threw her own punch at Cardin's jaw and the two fists made an impact to send Cardin sprawling to the floor.

Getting back up, Cardin growled and was ready to keep fighting before Professor Goodwitch stepped forward. "And with that, the match has concluded," she said as she brought up displays of the two teams and their Aura levels. "Can anybody tell me what you saw during the fight?"

"Aside from Cardin getting what was coming to him," Cereza remarked as she smirked at her joke.

"Vixen was too reliant on her Semblance during the fight and it wore her out faster," Weiss explained.

"Very good observation, Miss Schnee," Glynda commended. "It's true that Miss Kosaku used her Semblance to great effect, but her overuse of it to create clones of herself was taxing on her Aura. Which made it easier for her opponent to eliminate her from the fight," the professor lectured. "What else did you see? Ruby," Goodwitch asked as she looked at Ruby Rose.

"Well, I think that Rua was skilled with her shield and was quick enough to help her team," Ruby said.

"Indeed, Miss Rose," Glynda agreed. "Miss Amaranth was able to last the longest in the fight with her Aura levels and her defensive choice of weapon. Even when overwhelmed with the teamwork by Mister Bronzewing and Mister Thrush, she was able to stay in the fight and attack at the right opportunities."

Looking around, Glynda saw the damage dealt from the fight as Cardin's mace had broken apart several pieces of the ring. Raising her riding crop, she telekinetically moved the pieces back into their proper spots and it looked like the battle had not even taken place a few minutes ago. "I hope that this match has taught everyone something about how to improve themselves in combat and as a team," Glynda said as she turned back to the class.

* * *

"That felt great," Rua exclaimed as she and Team SLVR reunited with the rest of Fragment Hunter and even Team RWBY in the library. "Glad I got that out of my system."

"Let's just hope that Cardin will stop now that he got a chance to fight you," Blake Belladonna mentioned.

"Yeah. Let's hope," Lapis agreed.

While the group started talking, Azalea kept her eyes on Blake and scratched at her head. Layla saw this and spoke to the bovine Faunus. "What's going on, Azalea," Layla asked.

"Blake seems familiar to me. I just can't place it. But, I know that I heard her last name somewhere before," Azalea explained to her teammate.

Layla shrugged before she played with her hair. "I'm sure it's probably nothing."

Azalea looked back at Blake as she picked up a book to read in peace while the others did their own things. "Yeah... probably nothing," Azalea concluded. "But, I just feel like I know that name."

* * *

In the middle of the night at Vale's upper-class district, a large mansion had increased security because of a recent acquisition purchased by the owner. A sword that was once owned by a famous warrior during the Great War and the original wielder was rumored to have assisted in founding Vale's current government with the King of Vale. To celebrate his newly acquired display, the mansion's owner hosted a gathering of Vale's elite and show off the sword to associates and the media. But unknown to everyone, there was another who was interested in the sword.

On a rooftop overlooking the mansion, a young man observed his target and pulled out a pair of modified binoculars. Zooming in on the patrolling guards, possible entry points, and important guests, the young man grinned to himself as he spoke to somebody. "This is going to be really exciting. Right, Hermit," he said.

Over a communication device in his ear, a voice replied back. "Just be careful, Sombra. Security is tight because of the party and I know your style," 'Hermit' warned the male.

"Relax. This'll be a cinch. I sneak in, you do your thing, I grab the sword, then we get out fast. We've done this lots of times," 'Sombra' explained to his confidant. "Besides, it's going to be fun!"

"If you say so... Just don't get caught," 'Hermit' said.

"When have I ever been caught, Buddy," 'Sombra' remarked as he jumped down from the rooftop and made his way to the mansion. As he left his position, something was caught in the wind and was pinned to the door of the roof's exit. As the moonlight shined on the door, it was revealed to be a card with an emblem on it. The mark was a half-moon design with diamond-shaped marks to resemble a mask and a raccoon's tail curling to make the emblem resemble a question mark.

* * *

 **And with Rua and Team SLVR facing off against Cardin and Team CRDL, Fragment Hunter is now ready to continue with their time at Beacon.**

 **But, who is this "Sombra" character and what is he planning? Will he become the Roman Torchwick to Fragment Hunter? You can find out next time on "Sideline: Another Story"!**

 **Tune in for the next chapter and see who this newcomer really is. WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	7. Phantom Thief, Smoke Shadow

**Hey, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". When we last left off, a mysterious man named 'Sombra' was seen ready to steal a sword from a party at a mansion. How did it go and what does he have to do with Fragment Hunter? Find out in this chapter.**

 **You'll never see it coming!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters featured in the story.**

* * *

After the battle with Team CRDL on Monday, Team SLVR was satisfied with how they did and continued to work harder on their combat skills alongside the rest of their friends for the rest of the week. The three teams of SLVR, FCSA, and SAFR were finishing up their homework early for the weekend and were ready to enjoy a fun weekend for themselves. "Okay, Fragment Hunter," Silver said as he closed his textbook. "It's time we enjoyed our Friday night!"

"You said it," Rua agreed as she got up and stretched.

"Let's go and enjoy some time at the mall," Celadon suggested.

"Sounds fun," Cereza and Layla replied.

"I'm sure that we could go to a few Dust shops and get more supplies as well," Sunset mentioned as she checked the sleeves of her jacket. Everyone else agreed and soon, the twelve went off to the city of Vale to enjoy the rest of their day.

* * *

While the teenagers enjoyed their day in Vale, they made several stops for equipment and leisure. Celadon and Cereza wanted to check out a few boutiques for new outfits, Sunset and Silver went to get tools for weapon tune-ups for everybody, and Vinyl suggested going to the arcade for some relaxing fun and games. After a few hours, the group headed off to get something to eat and found a noodle stand called 'A Simple Wok'. "Today was fun," Layla said she sat down.

"Indeed, it was, Darling," Celadon agreed.

After some talk about how the day went and their food arrived, Fragment Hunter started to chow down. However, Azalea seemed lost in thought. "What's wrong, Freckles," Rua asked after slurping down a helping of ramen.

Azalea snapped out of her apparent daydream and turned to Rua. "It's nothing. I'm just trying to remember something," she answered.

"Still trying to figure out why Blake's name sounds familiar," Rebecca guessed.

"Yeah," Azalea admitted.

"I'm sure that the answer will come to you. They always take time," Layla reassured.

"Like writers or artists and their works," Vinyl said as a comparison.

"Heh. Yeah. You're right," Azalea said.

After finishing their meals, the group was about to head out when Rebecca turned to face something in the sky. "Rebecca, what's up," Lapis asked as everyone tried to see what their ninja friend saw.

Time passed in silence for a few seconds until a breeze picked up and Rebecca jumped onto the roof of the noodle shop in order to get extra air when she jumped again. As she surprised her friends with her sudden action, Rebecca grabbed something in the air and started to fall back to the ground. Landing safely, Rebecca showed everyone what she caught in the air. "I saw this flying in the air," the ninja explained.

Everyone gathered to see that it was a card with an emblem pictured on it. The image was a half-moon design with diamond-shaped markings to look like a mask and a raccoon's tail curling above to resemble a question mark. "What is it," Lapis asked as she took the card to get a closer look.

"This emblem seems familiar," Celadon said as she inspected the design.

"I think I've seen it before, too," Cereza stated.

"I get the feeling that our weekend just got a little more interesting," Vixen remarked with a titter.

* * *

The next morning, Fragment Hunter was still wondering about the strange card they found. They kept the card and sat at a table in the cafeteria to discuss it further. "It kind of looks like something we would wear on our outfits," Silver said as he took a closer look.

"It does look like it," Layla agreed as she turned to look at her vest's symbol. Everyone looked around and looked at their clothes to see all of their different emblems. Brainstorming more of what the symbol could mean, Slate closed his eyes and tried to concentrate. After a few seconds, Doctor Oobleck and Professor Ozpin were walking along and stopped to greet Fragment Hunter.

"Hello, students. I hope you completed your homework for the weekend," Ozpin reminded.

"We did it yesterday," Slate said. "We're just trying to figure out what the mark on this card could mean."

"May I see it," Oobleck asked before Vinyl passed the card to the history teacher. Taking a closer look, Oobleck adjusted his glasses before placing the card back onto the table. "Where did you get this," he inquired with a little concern in his voice.

"Rebecca found it when we were finishing dinner at 'A Simple Wok'. Why? Do you know what it is," Sunset said as she eyed the doctor.

"Indeed, I do," Oobleck replied. "This symbol was actually shown on the news earlier. If you check the Vale News Network on your Scrolls, you'll find out more." At Oobleck's advice, the teams pulled out their Scrolls and searched for the local news. Looking at the top story, everyone turned on the video shown on the site.

"The robbery in Vale's Upper-Class District continues to baffle the police and media alike. The night of the theft, Tanner Sands hosted a party at his mansion to reveal a newly acquired artifact. A sword that was once wielded in the battles of the Great War. This blade has been rumored to have been discovered through legally questionable methods, but the craftsmanship and markings indicate that it once belonged to the Celeste Family of the Kingdom of Vale," the news reporter said to the viewers.

Sunset's eyes widened at the mention of who the sword used to belong to. "Celeste Family?"

"Police are still investigating, but we were allowed to know these details. After the lights suddenly turned off, the sword was missing from the display case and this was left in its place," the reporter continued before showing an image of the display case. Everybody was surprised to see another card like the one they found was in its place. The raccoon-like moon emblem was printed on the card in the picture, but the one in the display case had a written message on it. 'Too easy. Try harder next time. Sombra.' "If anybody has any information that can help with this case, please contact the Vale Police Department. In other news," the reporter instructed before the video ended.

"We found a calling card," Fragment Hunter all said as they looked back at the emblem.

"Indeed, you have," Ozpin replied. "I think this requires investigating. But, I'm afraid that we have prior engagements with work and the Vytal Festival. It seems that Doctor Oobleck and myself have our hands full. Oh well, I'm sure that a small group of teenagers can stay out of trouble while they have an adventure to partake in."

"Dreadfully sorry that we can't be of assistance," Oobleck apologized. "But, some matters come before others. An important lesson in life. You should take it to heart," the history teacher explained. "Farewell. Enjoy your weekend," he said as he zipped away.

Ozpin took a sip from his mug and spoke to his students again. "I suppose I'll see the twelve of you in class on Monday. Have fun," he said before walking off.

"Now what," Rua asked as Sunset picked up the calling card.

"We need to do some digging about this 'Sombra' character," Sunset said. "Maybe we can find something from people in town."

* * *

Returning to the city of Vale, started heading to a place in town that Yang Xiao Long talked about before. Reaching a seedy part of town, the twelve found a nightclub that was under repairs. According to Yang, the owner of the club was an information broker that supposedly knew everything in Vale. If anybody knew even the smallest detail about 'Sombra', it might be him. "Well, let's head in," Cereza said as she walked through the ruined door with the others following her.

Men in suits were going around the destroyed dance floor fix up whatever they could and Fragment Hunter could see the largest of them talking with a pair of twins with black hair and green eyes at the bar. As they were approaching the three, everyone in the club turned to the twelve teenagers and were glaring at them. "What do you kids want? We're not even open yet and you all look too young to even be here," the bearded man said to the teams.

"We're here for Junior," Sunset said. "A friend of ours said she stopped by here before to talk to him about something. And looking around, it seems like she didn't get the answer she wanted."

The employees witnessing the conversation between their boss and the teenagers all flinched at the implications of Sunset's words and slowly backed away from them. "Did this 'friend' have blonde hair and a tan jacket," one of the twins asked.

"Yeah. That's Yang," Azalea replied.

Shuddering at the memory of what happened that night, the bearded man turned back to Fragment Hunter. "I'm Junior. Why do you need me," he bluntly asked.

Pulling out the calling card, Sunset placed it on the bar counter with the emblem showing. "We need to know who 'Sombra' is. We only know he uses these cards when he steals things," Sunset said.

Looking at the calling card and the emblem, Junior's face focused and he stepped behind the bar to pour himself a drink. "I know who you're looking for. I don't know where he is, but I know _who_ he is and what he might go for next," he remarked.

"Tell us," Silver and Rua exclaimed as they slammed their fists on the counter.

Finishing his drink, Junior looked toward the twins before speaking to Fragment Hunter. "His real name is Smoke Shadow. He's what you'd call a 'Phantom Thief'," he began to explain. "He can break into any place he wants to and steal whatever he can. He's got a reputation that started in Mistral and spread to the other Kingdoms. No level of security is too much for him. In fact, he loves the challenge and will even use these calling cards to show that he's targeting something or to show what he thought of the security he had to go through."

"A real Phantom Thief... Wow," Vixen whispered to herself.

"If he's still staying in town, he might go after something tougher to steal because he didn't like the challenge from his last heist," Junior said. "You might want to check museums and other places with good security. If you kids are looking for Shadow, then you're in for a challenge yourselves."

Fragment Hunter looked at each other in silence and thought it over. "Thanks for the info," Vinyl said before she started to leave.

"Hold up. You're not going to charge us an insane amount of Lien for what you gave us? Because if you were, I'd probably deal with all of your men before decking you in the face," Rua remarked as she glared at Junior and the twins.

Junior sighed and poured himself another drink before talking to the training warriors. "That blonde broke everything in here by herself. If you're all friends with her, I'm not going to risk getting my club demolished even further," Junior said before downing his drink. "Just go and deal with whatever. I don't want my club turned into rubble."

Heading out to meet up with Vinyl, Fragment Hunter left the club and started to talk about what they were told. "Smoke Shadow, huh? Sounds dangerous," Slate commented.

"We found out where the card came from, but now we need to get that sword back," Sunset said.

"Can't we leave it to the police," Azalea asked.

"No! We have to get that sword back and give it to the Celeste Family," Sunset exclaimed. "It was theirs to begin with and it shouldn't be hoarded by some rich guy who doesn't know the true value of it."

Azalea was surprised by Sunset's opinion about what to do and so was everyone else. "Is there any reason for that, darling," Celadon asked.

Sunset realized what she said and looked at all of her friends. Sighing, she rubbed the back of her head while explaining. "It's... complicated. But, I can just say that the Celeste Family founded Garrison Academy. So, it's pretty important to me that we get it back for them," Sunset said.

"Sounds fine to me," Cereza replied. "We have work to do, so let's go."

* * *

In Vale's Industrial District, a shadowy figure was leaping from building to building in the dead of night. Reaching an abandoned factory, the figure entered the building and looked at something on a table. A bejeweled broadsword laid down on the table with the gems in the pommel and crossguard shimmering in the light from a lamp above. "This still could've had been a better challenge for me," the figure said as he stepped into the light.

"Smoke, you should at least be happy it was an easy job," a voice said from the back of the room.

Smoke stood at 5'9", had a fair-skinned and lean build, brown eyes, and a gray raccoon tail with black stripes. Running a hand through his short and messy ombre hair, Smoke sighed as his fingers ran through the black and gray strands. "Too easy. Wasn't much fun," Smoke said to his associate. Smoke adjusted his outfit and looked in a nearby mirror to check his clothes. He wore a black trench coat over a blue shirt, had black pants and boots, and wore blue gloves and a red pouch on his left thigh with the same mystery raccoon moon emblems on his calling cards. Removing his black domino mask and brown backpack, he took a seat on a couch and started to unwind. "Maybe we can find another place before we leave town?"

"I've been looking into it and found a few places that have quite the amount of loot for us," a skinny, yet fit male said as he entered the same room as Smoke. He was a short young man at only 5'0", had pale skin, hazel eyes, and short dirty blonde hair. "I have Rouge scoping them out for recon. She'll be able to get me what I need for us," he said as he adjusted his glasses to reveal a small mole on his left cheek.

"Oliver Electrum, what would we do without you," Smoke said with a smile as he pulled out his Scroll to play video games.

"Quite a lot, but not much when it comes to computers," Oliver remarked. Oliver wore a green hoodie over a brown t-shirt, a pair of black pants with designs on the knees that resembled turtle shells with circuitry, a pair of fingerless gloves, and a pair of brown loafers. Sitting down with Smoke, the two decided to play a few video games while waiting for their colleagues.

After about 30 minutes, two more people arrived in a van and got out of the vehicle. "We're back, Hermit," a tanned young woman with dark blue eyes said. She stood at 5'9", had a toned and curvaceous hourglass figure, long white hair that reached her hips, and wore red lipstick. Her outfit consisted of a black tank top with a pink symbol that looked like a bat-winged heart with a kiss mark, a pair of black pants, and a pair of white go-go boots. "That last place on your list looks like the perfect target," she said as she walked over to the two boys on the couch and placed a customized set of binoculars next to Oliver.

The second was a large male at 6'4" with a dark complexion, buzzed black hair, and orange eyes. He had a stout and very muscular physique made him look like a strongman rather than a bodybuilder. He wore a gray sleeveless jersey, black boxing trunks, gray boxing shoes, and chains around his forearms and shins. The man also had tattoos over his arms that added to his intimidating look. His tattoos consisted of gears on his knuckles, a rhinoceros head with drills for horns on his left bicep, and his right arm was covered in a design that resembled fissures after an earthquake. "When do we go after whatever's in there," he asked as he cracked open a soda from a cooler.

"I'll need to go over all of Rouge's information and recon photos, Tremor," Oliver said as he grabbed the binoculars and walked toward a set of computers. "That's always important. If I have enough data, then we'll be able to get the target in just a few days."

"I just hope that we can get something good," Rouge said as she inspected the bejeweled sword. "If it's like this, then I'll be happy. I just don't understand why somebody like that guy had something beautiful like this."

"I'm glad that we took it then," Smoke said as he stopped playing games. "What do you have so far, Hermit? I'm itching for a new heist."

"Just hold on," Oliver said. "I'm just getting everything transferred to my computer." After a few minutes, numerous photos of museums and other buildings were displayed on the screens. As all four looked over the pictures, Smoke saw one location that intrigued him more than the others.

"Check out this museum, Hermit," Smoke instructed. Doing so, Oliver found the museum's website and everyone looked at the upcoming displays. "It looks like the new 'Treasures of The Great War' exhibit has a few important things. Especially with the Vytal Festival coming up so soon," the Raccoon Faunus said with a smirk. "And there's one thing that looks like the most secure display."

Looking at the header for the page, everyone saw that there was a crown in a display case. "A crown that belonged to the Warrior King of Vale," Rouge said in awe. "That'll definitely be a good score."

"Okay, team. Let's get more recon and plan out our heist," Hermit said as he started typing away at his computer. "With some luck, we'll be able to accomplish this by tomorrow."

As everyone got to preparing themselves and checking equipment, Smoke Shadow looked at the image of the crown on the screen. "This is going to be fun," he said to himself.

* * *

During the weekend, Fragment Hunter was investigating potential targets that Sombra could go after. Eventually, they managed to figure out the two most likely places that a phantom thief would strike and split up into two groups to check out both locations. Azalea, Slate, Layla, and Team SAFR chose the museum hosting the "Treasures of The Great War' exhibit.

"Wow... Look at all of these old weapons. I bet Ruby would love this exhibit. Too bad she and her team are looking for Blake," Azalea said as she walked past a collection of rifles and daggers that were in a display case.

"They were worried about their friend suddenly running off. I'd be worried if my little sister disappeared," Slate mentioned as he checked out a few antique firearms.

"I didn't know you had a sister," Layla remarked.

"Not important right now," Slate said. "Figuring out if that 'Sombra' guy's coming here or not is."

Looking around, everyone tried to figure out how Sombra could get in the building and what would be the main artifact that he went after. "I wonder if he would come in through the roof," Celadon pondered. "That's one way a phantom thief in the books I read make an entrance. But, he could also disguise himself and walk in through the front door."

"We don't know what he looks like. So, I don't think we'll be able to find him that way," Sunset reminded. "Maybe if we just check through everything and figure out what he might take after getting in? We could stop him before he makes his escape."

"Sounds like a plan to me," Vinyl said as she started looking over every exhibit again.

After a while of exploring the museum, everyone seemed to be exhausted and bored out of their minds. As they took a small breather, Sunset noticed something in the corner of her eye. Going over to check it out, she saw that it was an ornate crown and started to read the placard. "Hmm... 'This crown was once worn by the Warrior King of Vale during his coronation and has been considered one of the greatest remaining treasures of the Kingdom of Vale's pre-war history.' Guys, I think we found it," Sunset said.

As everyone saw the crown for themselves, the lights in the building all suddenly turned off. "What's going on? A blackout? Is something happening? Mommy? Stay close to me, sweetie." Several bystanders were confused and kept stumbling around in the darkness as Fragment Hunter quickly pieced the situation together.

"Looks like he's actually here," Slate remarked as he tried to look around in complete darkness. "Try using your Scrolls for a light source, everyone."

"See anything, Azalea," Sunset asked knowing her friend was able to see despite the sudden blackout.

Looking around, Azalea was able to notice a mysterious figure in a mask and carrying a cane making his way toward the crown. Pulling out her baton, Azalea was prepared to the battle the enigma as he ran at her. Setting Gladion to use Lightning dust, electricity sparked from her weapon and caught the attention of everyone as she swung the baton at the figure. With quick reflexes, the cloaked man nimbly dodged the strike and ducked under Azalea's arm. "He slipped past me," Azalea shouted to her friends.

"Keep on him," Rebecca answered back. "I'll help with the light situation." Retrieving a few shuriken from her armguards, Rebecca threw them with precision at the ceiling and the lights turned back on. "Looks like we don't need our Scrolls for light now," Rebecca commented.

As soon as the lights turned back on, Layla, Slate, and Team SAFR all saw the figure for themselves as the bystanders ran for safety or get security. Looking back at the teenagers, the masked man chuckled to himself. "I thought that this would be a challenge, but I didn't expect this," he said. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am the Phantom Thief, Sombra," he greeted with a bow and showed off his raccoon tail.

"AKA Smoke Shadow," Slate said as he drew his guns and aimed at the thief.

"I see you've been studying for this," Smoke said as he started to idly spin his cane around. "I'm sure that you'll go places. But, let me tell you. You're no match for me," he commented with a cocky smirk.

"Let's see if you can prove it," Sunset replied as she drew her sword and everyone else prepared their weapons.

"Who am I to disappoint a cute girl," Smoke remarked as he got ready to fight. Layla and Azalea immediately attacked with their weapons, but Smoke dodged and hooked his cane around Layla's scimitar. With one quick pull, she was disarmed and Smoke hit her in the stomach with his cane. Pressing a button, Smoke's cane emitted an electric current and shocked Layla before he pushed her away. "Although, I'll admit that I hate fighting them," Smoke said as he jumped away from Azalea's next attack. "I don't like hurting women."

"How about me," Slate asked as he pulled the triggers on his pistols and fired at the Raccoon Faunus. As the bullets flew, Smoke gasped and dodged out of the way. Evading the shots, the thief ended up standing next to Celadon and Sunset who were ready to slash away at him.

With swing after swing of their weapons, the two girls kept keeping Sombra on the defensive. Thinking quickly, the thief grabbed something out of his coat pocket and threw it on the ground. Breaking on impact, the object was revealed to be a smoke bomb as a dark cloud erupted from underneath Sunset and Celadon. Coughing from the smoke, the girls were distracted as Sombra ran past them and went for the crown again. But before he could get within a foot of it, a loud noise echoed through the room and alerted him.

Avoiding another attack in the form of an energy blast, Smoke Shadow saw that the next rookie Huntress to confront him was Vinyl as she had a hand held forward. "That was a nice trick," Smoke complimented. Vinyl only nodded in response before activating Rhythm Scratch to form her hard light claws. "Not much of a chatterbox, are you," the thief asked. Shaking her head, Vinyl attacked the Raccoon Faunus with a slash from her claws.

Vinyl kept Smoke on the defensive as she slashed away at him and matched his agile movements. Dodging every swipe of the projected claws, Smoke saw a chance to head for his target as Vinyl backflipped to gain some distance. Running past Vinyl, Smoke was nearly at the crown until he heard something flying through the air behind him. Turning to see a few shuriken thrown in his direction, Smoke leaned quickly to the side as the blades narrowly missed his cheek. "You're not done yet," Rebecca said as she pulled out her wakizashi and used her armguards to retrieve her previously thrown shuriken.

Smoke just looked at his new opponent and smirked. "I haven't fought a ninja in a while. This'll be fun," the phantom thief said as Rebecca sped toward him with her sword raised. Rebecca kept maneuvering around Smoke in order to get a good angle of attack, but Smoke was able to match Rebecca's speed and reflexes as the two were starting to become blurs. "Hahaha! I was right," Smoke laughed as he managed to hook his cane around Rebecca's wrist and threw her to the ground before shocking the ninja with his cane.

As Rebecca recoiled in pain from the attack, Sombra rushed past her and reached the crown's display case. "The seven of you gave me a good run for this," Sombra complimented as he held his cane back behind him. "Hope to meet again, ladies," he said as he threw his arm forward and the hook of the cane went flying on a cable toward the ceiling and electricity sparked off of it. With an even more powerful electric current sent through the lights, the room was pitch-black again.

"Crap! Not again," Slate said as he couldn't aim at Smoke Shadow again.

"I got him," Azalea exclaimed as she went off chasing the now fleeing phantom thief who somehow managed to swipe the crown as he took out the lights. As the two Faunus ran out of the museum, they ended up in the middle of a parking garage. "Get back here," Azalea shouted at the Raccoon Faunus.

After another minute of chasing after him, Smoke stopped and turned to face the girl pursuing him. "It's kind of nice to talk with another Faunus. Especially a pretty girl like you, Miss," Smoke said as he idly twirled the crown around his wrist.

"W-wh-what," Azalea stuttered as her cheeks began to flush pink.

"Is it possible that you'd like to have dinner together," Smoke asked as he smiled at Azalea. With her cheeks turning red, she couldn't answer him. "Hmm. The shy type? Oh well. I was hoping to at least know the name of the beautiful girl that managed to see me coming back in the museum," Smoke remarked as he shrugged his shoulders.

"Y-y-you won't get away with that crown," Azalea said as she adjusted her grip on Gladion and pulled out her Scroll. "Guys, I found Sombra in the old parking garage outside. The fourth floor," she told the others.

"We'll be there soon. Just keep him there," Sunset instructed on the other line.

Humming in thought as he placed the crown in his backpack, Smoke looked over Azalea again and spoke up. "They might not get here in time. I'll be able to escape even if the cops are gathering beneath us, cutie," he stated.

"H-how can you be so sure," Azalea asked as she prepared to fight Sombra again.

"Because like you and your friends, I know when to have some backup from mine," the phantom thief explained. "TREMOR, NOW," Sombra yelled out to the shadows. Confused by who he was talking to, Azalea turned around to see a bulky man with a dark complexion and tattoos charging at her with a big punch. Quickly blocking the hit, she was able to avoid taking too much damage. However, Azalea was sent flying back from the punch and landed on her back.

Groaning in pain as she stood up, Azalea saw the large newcomer put on knuckledusters with drill bits and got into a fighting stance. "Time to fight, Tiny. Let's go," he said as he prepared to battle Azalea. Seeing that if she went after Smoke, she would end up getting attacked by the new guy and Smoke would escape if she fought, Azalea was in a difficult situation.

Luckily for Azalea, a few bullets were fired at her opponents and caught them off guard. Seeing that Slate and the girls made it, Smoke thought it over calmly and fished through his coat for more smoke bombs. "Tremor, heads up," he exclaimed to his ally as he threw three smoke bombs at the members of Fragment Hunter. Hearing the warning, Tremor's fist began to shake violently and he punched the ground with enough force to crack the concrete.

As the impact from the punch and the smoke bombs popped against the ground, the building filled with smoke and began to shake violently. Feeling like they were caught in an earthquake, Slate and the girls were unable to stand still and fell to the floor. With the massive cloud of smoke in the building as well, everyone was coughing to keep their lungs clear. Due to the old structure of the building and the vibrations, chunks of stone fell to the ground as well. "Come on, Tremor! Let's get out of here with the loot," Sombra exclaimed as he used his cane to grapple onto another rooftop.

"Right behind you, Sombra," Tremor answered back as he sounded like he lifted something to carry it.

After the smoke cleared and the shaking stopped, Fragment Hunter groaned in pain and coughed some more. "Damn. I didn't see that coming," Slate said as he held his head in pain from hitting it on the floor.

"None of us did," Vinyl said as she rubbed her arm to help with the pain.

"And those ruffians got away with the crown," Celadon said. "Leave it to thieves to always make a getaway that leaves us reeling in pain. We're lucky none of the bystanders got hurt."

Sunset rubbed the back of her head as she got up, but heard Layla gasp before she spoke. "Guys... Azalea's not here," Layla said.

Slate's eyes narrowed as he turned to his teammate. "What," he asked with a dangerous tone.

"Look," Layla said as she pointed to where a chunk of concrete was broken apart and covered two objects. The first was a Scroll that managed to avoid being damaged, but everyone immediately recognized the second item. Seeing Azalea's Multi-Action Dust Baton, 'Gladion', on the floor next to the Scroll had everyone realize the same thing.

"Azalea was taken," Celadon managed to voice as her eye were wide and she kept a hand in front of her mouth. "This is the worst possible thing!"

"I'd say you were being a drama queen, but you're right. This IS bad," Slate said with a glare at the rooftop Sombra managed to escape to. As he was about to contact Cereza and Team SLVR, he felt something was wrong. "Is it getting hotter in here?"

Looking around, everyone gasped as they saw Sunset grinding her teeth in anger and glaring at Azalea's stuff with enough fury that it looked like she was going to explode. This was further emphasized by her Fire Dust jacket sending large flames around her body and forming into the shape of burning wings that glowed with such intensity that it began heating up the entire floor. "I WILL BURN THAT RACCOON'S TAIL OFF AND TURN HIM INTO BARBECUE IF HE SO MUCH AS TOUCHES AZALEA," Sunset screamed in primal rage.

* * *

 **And now, have the first antagonists of Sideline and another cliffhanger! With Azalea missing after that heist, how will Fragment Hunter deal with those thieves and their missing friend? Find out next time on "Sideline: Another Story".**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out.**


	8. Fragment Hunter vs Team SMKE: Part 1

**Hello, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here and I'm ready to show what happens next in Sideline. When we last left our heroes in Fragment Hunter, they split up to figure out where the phantom thief, Smoke Shadow aka Sombra, would strike for his next heist. After failing to stop him, Slate, Layla, and Team SAFR see that Azalea is missing. Sunset doesn't like this at all and reacts in anger. Will they manage to rescue their friend? Find out now!**

 **AMBUSH!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only characters I own are in Fragment Hunter (Team SLVR, Team FCSA, and Team SAFR) and Smoke Shadow's crew.**

* * *

"I WILL BURN THAT RACCOON'S TAIL OFF AND TURN HIM INTO BARBECUE IF HE SO MUCH AS TOUCHES AZALEA," Sunset screamed in primal rage as her Fire Dust jacket burned brightly and made flames surround her.

"Sunset! Breathe, Darling," Celadon said in an attempt to calm down her leader.

"Yeah. We don't want this parking garage to go up in flames," Slate remarked.

"J-just calm down," Layla nervously said.

"HOW CAN I BE CALM WHEN AZALEA'S BEEN TAKEN BY A THIEF AND HIS MUSCLEBOUND GOON," Sunset shouted at Layla. "She's been kidnapped and we couldn't do anything! We should've been able to handle that thief!"

"But, he wasn't a Grimm or another student," Layla reminded as she looked down at the floor in shame. "We couldn't do anything against someone like him."

"Layla's right. We couldn't stop him," Rebecca said. "If he trained outside of the Kingdoms like I was, then he's bound to have exceptional skill."

"Rebecca has a point. He was obviously prepared and skilled enough to handle us despite having no information on us," Celadon agreed.

"We need to go after them! There's no telling what they might do to Azalea," Sunset said with lingering anger.

"What we need to do is get help from Cereza and Team SLVR. Explain the situation to them and think of a plan while keeping Rua from breaking something," Slate countered. "If Silver can turn into a wolf, maybe he can track them," he thought aloud as he pulled out his Scroll.

Growling and taking a deep breathe, Sunset tried to calm herself down. "Let's do that. But the longer we wait, the longer Azalea is left without help."

* * *

The last thing Azalea remembered was cornering Sombra before his associate arrived and helped him escape. After that, everything was a blur and she only felt the hard pavement of the parking garage. As she woke up, she felt that she was now resting on a sofa and was in a dimly lit building. Seeing that she was in an unfamiliar place, Azalea was panicking and tried to look around. After a minute, she realized that the building was an old factory and that she wasn't restrained by anything. "Where is this place? How long was I out," Azalea asked herself. Reaching into her pocket, she tried to find her Scroll before realizing it wasn't there and that her sweater was torn a bit. Gasping, she frantically searched herself and saw that she was only missing her Scroll and her weapon. "Where's my stuff?!"

"You probably dropped them when you were knocked out by my attack," a deep male voice said as something was being struck repeatedly. Looking behind her, Azalea saw that it was the 'Tremor' man that helped Smoke Shadow escape and saw he was hitting a punching bag. "If you're wondering, I didn't hit you. That parking garage was old and starting to fall apart. I probably knocked some pieces of the ceiling loose and one hit you in the head," Tremor explained as he delivered a left hook into the bag.

"But... why did you bring me here," Azalea cautiously asked.

Tremor threw a haymaker into the punching bag that sent it falling to the ground with a large hole. "Sombra doesn't like seeing girls hurt and I don't like seeing anyone hurt when I'm not fighting them. It's no fun that way," Tremor explained as he set up another punching bag to replace the destroyed one. "We brought you here because we couldn't leave you on the ground."

"M-my friends would've helped me," Azalea whispered as she held her arm.

"I know they would've," Tremor said as he continued to jab away at his punching bag. "Besides, we never got to fight. And anyone who has the guts to chase after Smoke like that is somebody I wanna brawl with!" With a loud grunt, Tremor threw an uppercut at the punching bag and sent it into the air before he jumped after it. Smashing the bag down with a hammer fist, it burst open and sent sand flying all over the floor. "And if you're pals come looking for you, then I get to fight with them too," Tremor added.

"Is that all that you have on the brain, Agate," a new voiced asked before stepping into the room. Azalea turned to see a short male wearing glasses and a tanned woman with white hair. "I swear, you always want to test your strength against... anyone you... meet," the male continued before he saw Azalea for himself.

Everyone saw that the bespectacled male was looking at Azalea, but not saying anything. Tremor and the new girl started laughing at their associate's sudden silence. "Oh man! Oliver, you STILL can't talk to girls? That's hilarious," the girl said as she was laughing.

"Bite me, Rouge" Oliver retorted as he opened a water bottle and started to take a drink.

"If you really want me to," 'Rouge' replied with a sultry tone. Hearing her say that, Oliver spit out his drink as he began to cough. Seeing his friend needing help, Tremor went to give Oliver a hand. "Hahahaha! I can't believe that you did that, Electrum! That was a classic spit take," Rouge said with a snigger.

"Ummm, what's happening here," Azalea asked as she saw her 'captors' messing around with each other.

Rouge turned back to Azalea and took another look at her. Smiling, she walked toward Azalea with a sway in her hips. "It's not often that we get a cute girl visiting us like you," Rouge said with a wink. Azalea blushed a little as Rouge continued to talk. "Oliver's shy around girls he doesn't know. It took him weeks to actually talk with me."

"In case you didn't pick up on it, he's kind of a nerd," Tremor added with a grin.

"Kun! Stop that," Oliver exclaimed. "Same with you, Miss Moonstone!"

"Why should we? Hahaha," Rouge laughed.

As the others started to bicker and speak amongst themselves, Azalea tried to sneak away and find her way out. Seeing a door, the Cow Faunus carefully made her way over and grabbed the doorknob. Pulling on the door, Azalea realized that it was locked from the other side and that her attempt to leave possibly alerted the others.

However, they didn't seem to notice and continued to speak with each other. "There has to be another way out," Azalea said quietly to herself. Moving to the upper floor of the factory, she searched for another exit. "I hope that the others can find me. I just know that Rua's going to be the angriest at this whole thing."

* * *

"WHEN I FIND THAT RACCOON, I'M GOING TO CARVE HIM INTO PIECES AND FEED HIM TO THE NEAREST PACK OF GRIMM!"

Everyone outside of the museum was stunned in silence at the anger coming from the girl screaming. However, one warrior-in-training was either brave or stupid enough to talk with her. "I think you need to calm down. And that's a lot coming from me," Rua said to a raging Sunset.

"I don't want to calm down! I want Silver to help find our friend," Sunset aggressively replied.

"I'm not going to if you don't calm down," Silver warned.

"Just breathe, Darling," Celadon instructed. "Take deep breaths, hold them in, and exhale slowly," she demonstrated.

Following Celadon's lead, Sunset calmed herself down. "I'm sorry, guys. This is just stressing me out too much. We had that thief, failed to catch him, and Azalea got nabbed in the process," Sunset apologized. Looking down at her boots, Sunset mumbled sadly. "I wasn't able to do anything..."

Feeling something placed on her head, Sunset saw that Slate had removed his hat and placed in her head like he does for Azalea. "We'll find them. You just need to know that we're still learning and we need to rely on each other," Slate reminded.

"...You're right. We all have a lot to learn," Sunset answered as she took off Slate's hat and gave it back to him. Placing it back on his head, Slate smiled at Fragment Hunter's de facto leader. "Okay team. We need to find Azalea. Let's get to tracking, Silver," Sunset ordered.

Silver only nodded before transforming into his wolf form with his Semblance and started to sniff at Azalea's items. Finding a scent from the Scroll and Gladion, Silver started to sniff the air and floor to figure out what direction Azalea was taken. Picking up something, he turned to the others and spoke up, "This way!"

Following after Silver, everyone went in the same direction in hopes of locating their missing friend. "Hold on, Farm Girl. We're coming for you," Sunset said to nobody in particular.

* * *

Azalea was still looking for an exit and kept coming up empty as she closed door after door. "Where's the exit to this place? I don't want to break a wall to get out of here," Azalea muttered to herself. Searching the downstairs area again, Azalea found herself in a room with a pair of modified binoculars and a few computers. "What are these," Azalea asked herself before looking through the binoculars.

As she peered through the device, she saw that it was similar to a camera. As she looked through the previous pictures, she saw that the gallery was filled with photos of the museum and a few other places that were potential targets for Sombra. "So, you enjoying the pictures," a voice inquired from behind Azalea.

Panicking, Azalea instinctively elbowed behind herself and turned into a big hook. However, the attack failed to hit its target as it felt like her arm went through thin air instead of impacting against someone. Seeing that it was Smoke Shadow, Azalea put up her guard and prepared to defend herself against the thief. "Stay back," she warned.

"Whoa. Is that the way you treat the guy who DIDN'T tie you up when his friend brought you here," Smoke asked as he smiled and raised his hands to show he didn't mean harm.

"It's how I treat thieves who steal priceless artifacts," Azalea said.

"Come on, Freckles. I have calling cards. It's kind of obvious I'm a criminal. At least I have a sense of honor about it though," Smoke said as he began to circle around Azalea.

"I thought the saying was 'There's no honor among thieves'," Azalea said as she turned to keep an eye on the Raccoon Faunus.

"Well then, you've never been to Vacuo before," Smoke retorted with a smirk as he quickly slipped behind Azalea.

Azalea moved to get Sombra in her sights before replying. "I have teammates from there."

"Well, I'm sure that they can tell you about it when they come and find you," Sombra said as he lazily twirled his cane.

"And if I know my friends, then you and your gang are going to be in for a fight," Azalea mentioned.

"I'm sure that Kun would absolutely love that. He never did get to see how you fight," Smoke said before subtly hooking his cane around Azalea's waist. Pulling Azalea toward him, Smoke brought her close so that he could hold her chin and look into her eyes. "Maybe I can see how you handle yourself some more, too," he asked with a flirtatious tone and a charming smile. Azalea's face turned bright red at what the phantom thief was saying and she could only stammer in response.

"Smoke, stop teasing the poor girl," Rouge said as she approached the two Faunus. "Let me have a shot at her," she laughed.

"Oh, alright," Smoke reluctantly agreed before turning back to Azalea. "Can I at least know your name?"

"A-A-Azalea..."

"Azalea... Perfect name for a delicate flower such as yourself," Smoke complimented before he left the room.

After Smoke left the room, Azalea fell to her knees and curled into the fetal position. Blushing at what happened, the Bovine Faunus hid her face in embarrassment. "Why me," she moaned.

"Don't worry about it too much. Smoke flirts with every pretty girl he sees. So do I," Rouge said.

"...But, I'm not pretty," Azalea mumbled to herself.

Overhearing her, Rouge took another look at Azalea and helped her off the ground. "Seeing as you don't have an exit plan, follow me. I want to talk with you," Rouge said. Following the other woman, Azalea was guided to a makeshift dressing room in the basement of the factory and stopped in the center of the room. "Look in the mirror over there," Rouge instructed.

"O-Okay," Azalea nervously replied as she turned to see her reflection.

"You want to know what I see when I look at this mirror right now," Rouge rhetorically asked as she looked at the reflections of herself and Azalea. "I see a beautiful girl that's hidden away because she's shy and timid. Because she's scared of what she was treated like growing up. I see a woman who can catch everyone's eye when she walks by in the right outfit. I see a woman whose beauty can fool others and hide a smart brain underneath her gorgeous hairstyle. I see a girl with power, brains, skill, and charm."

As Azalea heard that speech, she couldn't tell if Rouge was talking about herself, Azalea, or if she was making up a story. But one thing was for certain, Azalea was entranced by the thief's words the entire time as she stared at the mirror. Seeing Rouge walk away, Azalea saw the woman reach into a closet and grab a few clothes. "Try these on. You should change out of that torn sweater," the thief said as she gave what she grabbed to the Faunus girl.

Looking at the clothes Rouge gave handed her, Azalea was getting even more confused. "Why are you doing this? I'm training to be a Huntress and you're part a band of thieves," Azalea asked.

"We may be on opposite sides, kid, but you need to have more confidence," Rouge explained. "You're beautiful, so start acting like it. Even just a small change in how you dress or a little makeup can help how you feel about yourself. Help you break out of your shell and even help make you feel like a true Huntress when you get there," Rouge elaborated as she started to walk out of the room. "Besides... It might also help you get a few cute guys," the thief added with a wink before she left.

Hearing those last few words made Azalea blush again before she turned to the clothing held in her arms. "Well... I might as well find something in this pile," Azalea said to herself. Placing the clothes on the nearest chair, Azalea started removing her damaged sweater and looked at her reflection again. Seeing her flannel shirt askew, she adjusted it before looking for a replacement to her favorite green sweater. "I wonder if Sunset and the rest of Fragment Hunter found me yet," Azalea asked herself.

* * *

"Is this the place," Layla asked as she looked at the old factory.

"I can smell Azalea in there. Just not exactly where," Silver said before he transformed back into his regular Wolf Faunus form. "We'll have to split up to cover more ground in this factory."

"Okay, teams. We'll split up into groups of two or three people," Sunset instructed. "I'll go with Layla and Slate, Team SLVR splits up, Cereza and Celadon go with each other while Vinyl and Rebecca pair up. Got it?" Everyone agreed before separating and started to search the factory. Unknown to Fragment Hunter however, they were all being watched.

In the factory, Oliver Electrum was at his computer systems and looked at some of the monitors to see that Fragment Hunter was at the front doors. "Cyber Shell calling Phantom Thief, Rhino Wrecker, and Vampire Bat. We have visitors. Prepare for confrontation," he said as he pressed down on something in his ear.

"Got it, Hermit. Me and Tremor can handle a few of them together while Rouge gets changed," Smoke Shadow said through a communication earpiece. "Make sure that they can't call for backup."

"Already on it," Hermit said as he started to type commands on his keyboard. After a few minutes, a notice appeared on a screen that said 'Scrolls Locked Down'. "Nobody can stop my skills," Hermit boasted as he finished jamming Fragment Hunter's communications. "I'll keep an eye on all of them. Just be careful everyone. There's more than who was at the museum earlier."

"Okay, 'Dad'," Sombra joked.

* * *

Inside the factory, Rua and Silver started looking around for any sign of Azalea. "I can't see a damn thing in here," Rua complained as she pulled out her Scroll for a light source. "You see anything I can't, Silver?"

"Yeah. Check out that area right there," Silver said as he pointed to a couch and some ruined sandbags. "Somebody was here before and used this place to practice," he remarked before transforming with his Semblance. Sniffing the air and sofa, Silver found something familiar. "Azalea was definitely here earlier," he mentioned. "And there was another guy here because I can still smell him off the sandbags."

"Okay, I think it's pretty cool that you're able to do this kind of stuff," Rua admitted with a smile. "I mean, who wouldn't want to track somebody about two miles away just by scent alone. Really helpful with police work," Rua noted. "Why did you want to become a Huntsman anyway," she curiously asked.

Looking down and his wolf form's ears drooping, Silver was hesitant. "It's... complicated," Silver said laconically.

"Aren't we all," Rua remarked with a bit of snark in her tone and a smirk on her face.

Before Silver could retort, he heard something and sniffed the air. Changing back to normal, he readied his grip on his weapon. "We have somebody coming. It's the guy that used these punching bags," Silver warned his teammate. As Rua prepared her shield, the two members of Team SLVR saw a large man charging at them for a punch.

Dodging out of the way, the man punched the ground instead and left the floor cracked from the strike. "Hmm. Nice work finding me," he said as he got into a boxing stance. With his Drill Bit Knuckle Dusters on, it looked like the punches he would throw will undeniably hurt. "If you're looking for your friend, she's okay. We're thieves, not monsters," he mentioned.

"Still doesn't mean we won't hurt you for taking our friend in the first place," Rua exclaimed as she separated her shield into its Arm Blade Mode.

Punching the air, the boxer smirked at the challenge. "Good to know. Name's Tremor," he stated. "Who are you two?"

"Silver Wuruhi."

"Rua Amaranth."

"Okay, you two. LET'S DANCE," Tremor exclaimed as he started his offense against the members of Team SLVR. Charging at Rua, Tremor threw a couple of jabs at her as she formed and raised her shield. With sparks flying off the weapons, Tremor kept pushing Rua back until Silver jumped above them and unsheathed the knives in his boots. Bringing his heel down, Silver delivered an axe kick to try and stab Tremor in the shoulder.

Acting quickly, Tremor slid away from Rua and managed to dodge Silver's attack before nailing the girl in the side with a powerful straight punch. After being sent flying into the couch, Rua was dazed for a while and had to recover. Seeing his friend out of the battle for a little time, Silver revved his chainsaw and took a big swing at Tremor. The boxer dodged the swing and countered with a heavy punch, but Silver was faster and ducked under the attack. Bringing the chainsaw up for a vertical slash, the weapon made contact with Tremor and Silver began to continue his onslaught.

"Take this," Silver exclaimed as he continued to punch, slash, and kick at Tremor. Tremor himself was forced to dodge and block most of the attacks from Silver, but he powered through the damage. With an opening available when Silver jumped for another slash, Tremor swiftly grabbed Silver by the shoulders. Tightening his grip on the Wolf Faunus, Tremor made sure he couldn't move before slamming his forehead into Silver's face. After delivering the headbutt, Tremor stomped down on Silver's foot to keep him in place as he threw a massive and heavy left hook that lead into an elbow strike. Getting decked in the face like that, Silver was sent sprawling to the ground.

After Silver was knocked to the floor, Rua changed her shield into twin blades and teleported behind Tremor to begin pummeling him in the back with several quick punches. Turning around, Tremor backhanded Rua away before following up with an uppercut. Warping into a blind spot, Rua kicked Tremor in the gut before continuing with a couple of hooks. "Hahaha! This is a great fight! You two have skills," Tremor boisterously exclaimed as he got out of Rua's reach.

"Then, you'll love this," Rua said as Silver got back up. Constantly teleporting around Tremor, Rua was able to keep him distracted while Silver used his chainsaw's whip form to grab onto one of Tremor's arms. With one limb caught, Rua was able to land a series of blows on the defenseless boxer. However, Tremor was able to pull free from Silver's weapon and smashed it into Rua.

"I did like that. Let me show you guys some tricks now," Tremor said as he removed the chain from his arm. Soon, the drills on his knuckle dusters began to spin and his fists vibrated before he threw a punch at the two training Hunters. As the punch was thrown, Rua and Silver dodged before seeing that the punch was able to puncture holes into the sofa. All three saw the damage and were equally shocked. "Oh, come on! I liked that couch," Tremor whined before getting back into the fight.

Silver and Rua kept dodging the projectile punches from Tremor and they both noticed it was similar to Yang Xiao Long using her Ember Celica. "Big deal. You can punch bullets at us. We have a classmate that does the same thing. We know how to handle this," Rua taunted.

"Then, try it," Tremor exclaimed as he threw more punches at Rua. Bringing her shield together, Rua was able to block the attacks, but the shield kept shaking in her hands. Throwing her shield into the air and teleporting to it, Rua unfolded it into a giant shuriken and hurled the weapon at Tremor. Being forced to dodge, Tremor jumped back and was caught in a trap by Silver. In wolf form, he pounced onto the boxer and kept attacking with his claws and fangs before getting thrown off. Seeing Silver growling at him and Rua holding her shield again, Tremor laughed loudly. "THIS IS AMAZING! I think we're just getting started with our fight," he shouted before rushing in for another punch.

* * *

"Where would they keep her," Rebecca asked herself quietly as she and Vinyl snuck through the second floor of the factory. Looking around, they were navigating through the dimly lit halls and offices. "We need to figure out how to get around first," Rebecca said to Vinyl. Before the DJ could give a suggestion, they felt something and prepared their weaponry.

"Oh, hey! It's you two again," Sombra noted as he stepped out of the shadows. "How's it going? Aside from the 'we came here to save our friend' thing? Because she's okay. I'm a thief, not a pervert."

"You better tell us where she is or we'll slice you to ribbons," Vinyl stated as she made Rhythm Scratch create a hard light katana.

"I will if you fight me. You two were able to keep up with me while I tried to make a run for the crown. I want to have a rematch," Smoke said as he spun his cane. "Hmm. I think Kun is rubbing off on me," he whispered to himself.

"You're on," Vinyl and Rebecca agreed before they both rushed him. With their swords raised, the girls tried to slash at Sombra, but he jumped onto the nearest wall and kicked off of it to get behind the girls. Turning around, Vinyl sent an energy blast at Sombra with her Semblance and managed to hit him in the chest.

"Ouch. That stings," Sombra said to himself. "Guess I have to stop going easy on you Huntresses," the thief declared to Vinyl and Rebecca.

"You were going easy on us," Rebecca cautiously asked. "I don't believe you." Preparing a handful of shuriken, Rebecca snuck around the thief and threw the blades at Smoke. However, all he did in response was gasp and stand there. As the shuriken approached Smoke Shadow, they just went right through him and clattered on the ground. "What the," Rebecca exclaimed as she and Vinyl stared in disbelief.

"Why do think I call myself a 'Phantom Thief'? How do you think I got the sword and the crown like I did without cutting the glass cases? How do you think those cards ended up where they did," Sombra rhetorically asked. "You're not the only people with special powers. I can walk through walls with anything I carry. I can make it seem like I'm a ghost to anybody who doesn't know me. I call my Semblance, 'Phantasm'. Pretty cool, right," he explained.

"Everybody has limits. We'll find yours soon," Rebecca said as she used her armguards to collect her shuriken.

"Then, let's continue our dance, ladies," Smoke said with a bow before getting back into a fighting stance.

* * *

Cereza and Celadon searched their way through the top floor of the factory and didn't find any sign of Azalea anywhere. "Where is she? She's my teammate, so I should've been responsible," Cereza said.

"I don't think we'll be able to find her if we rush, Darling," Celadon mentioned. "If these ruffians have Azalea hidden up here, it's pretty unlikely. Maybe if we check on the lower floors," she suggested. Before they could turn around, Cereza and Celadon heard a clicking sound. Hearing gunfire and seeing bullets hit the floor by their feet, the two girls had to retreat. Making their way to a catwalk, Cereza and Celadon were cornered on the narrow bridge.

"Hmm. I didn't expect Azalea to have such gorgeous friends," a female voice commented as she stepped onto the catwalk. Celadon and Cereza noticed that she was wearing a skintight black catsuit, long fingerless white gloves, white go-go boots, and a red domino mask that resembled bat wings. She held two pistols with a bat wing design and idly twirled one as she spoke. "This may be fun."

"Where is Azalea," Cereza impatiently asked.

"And where did you get that outfit? It's amazing," Celadon commented.

"Oh, this old thing? Had for a few years," the woman mentioned.

"Well, it looks ravishing on you," Celadon complimented. "What's your name? I'm Celadon Flynn and this is Cereza Fujita."

"Call me 'Rouge'," she replied. "You two have great style."

"ENOUGH! Tell us where Azalea is or I fill you full of holes," Cereza practically screamed as she aimed her tonfa at Rouge.

"Someone's testy. I suppose that we'll have to settle this Agate's way," Rouge remarked as she raised her pistols. Pulling the triggers, Rouge shot at Cereza and Celadon only to see them deflect the bullets with their weapons. Reacting quickly, Cereza fired her own shots from her tonfa to counter against Rouge. Jumping off the catwalk to dodge, Rouge grabbed a bar underneath and flipped her way back onto the bridge. "Is that all, or are you two just pretty faces," Rouge taunted.

"Depends if you're just going to play 'Keep Away' or not," Cereza replied. Jumping at Rouge, Cereza went for a flying kick that the thief ducked under. However, Celadon was able to use her Semblance to fire gemstones at Rouge and inflict some damage to her. Caught off her guard by the attack, Rouge was left open to Cereza backflipping at her and was hit by a bicycle kick. "Sometimes you just need to get more... physical."

"Oh, I can get physical," Rouge said in a sultry tone as she twirled her weapons around to transform them into butterfly knives. With the new blades in her hands, Rouge turned to try and cut Cereza in the side. Dodging at the last second, Cereza activated her Time Mirage Semblance to slow down everything around her and unleash a string of punches and kicks at the thief. After the Time Mirage ended, Rouge was sent flying at Celadon and got hit with the latter's spear.

With the wind knocked out of her, Rouge was sent to the floor of the catwalk and Cereza stomped on the thief's back. "Tell us you're keeping Azalea," Cereza demanded as she pointed her tonfa's gun barrel at Rouge's head.

Rouge could feel Cereza's heel digging into her body and the sharp pain from it. "You're pretty tough up close. Guess I need to deal with that," Rouge commented as her body rippled briefly. Shocked by what was happening, Celadon and Cereza were caught off guard as they saw a vine-like tail appear from Rouge's body and grab at Cereza's ankle. Pulling the leader of Team FSCA off of her, Rouge rolled off the catwalk and her new tail caught onto the rail before she pulled herself up.

"You're a Faunus," Celadon asked in surprise.

"Not exactly," Rouge said as her body rippled again and she jumped off the catwalk. Sprouting bat wings from her back, Rouge was airborne and pointed her pistols at Celadon. "I'm human. This is just my Semblance. I can change my look whenever I want," she explained. "Changing my eyes into those of a Faunus does come with perks like night vision, though."

"That's an amazing power, Darling! But, you still have to pay for taking my friend," Celadon commented as she separated her spear into its whip mode. Cereza stood back up and pointed her tonfa at Rouge with a glare in her eyes.

"I suppose that's fair. But, let's see you're worth what I charge," Rouge taunted with a flirtatious tone.

* * *

Layla, Slate, and Sunset were searching through the rest of the factory together, but they couldn't find anything. "I don't think we can find her like this," Layla said sadly. "If she had her Scroll, we could've called her."

"Well, she doesn't. I might as well check with the others," Sunset remarked as she took her Scroll out of her jacket pocket. As she reached her contacts, she noticed something unusual. "No service? That doesn't make sense."

"Shot in the dark here, but what if they had a hacker to help with some of the security at that mansion and in the museum," Slate mused. "How else do you explain the lights going out when they did before?"

"And with us in their hideout, they would have the advantage with him controlling a communication jammer or something. Great," Sunset realized as her face became despondent. "As if this day could get any worse..."

"Sunset... I... ohh," Layla tried to reassure her friend, but failed to think of something to cheer her up.

Slate saw the sorrowful looks on the girls' faces and scoffed at them. "Come on, girls. Azalea couldn't have been dealt with so easily. We just need to keep our hopes up," Slate said. "How do you think she would feel if either of you were in her place?"

As Slate asked this, Sunset's eyes widened at something she completely forgot. "My Semblance," she exclaimed as she smacked her head. "How could I have been so stupid? I can try and find her with it." Calming down so that she could focus, Sunset sat down with her legs crossed to try and search for Azalea. _"Come on, Sunset. You can find Azalea. She's your friend and you can find her. You just have to concentrate,"_ Sunset thought to herself.

After a moment of silence, Sunset managed to sense something and heard Azalea's thoughts. _"I think she's right about what she said. A new outfit might help me feel better. This one's cute. Let's see if it fits."_

 _"Is she... trying on clothes? What is going on, Azalea,"_ Sunset pondered in confusion.

 _"Sunset? Is she here? But... I'm in a dressing room by myself. How could she be here with me,"_ Azalea thought to herself.

"Hold on a second," Sunset said aloud. " _Azalea. It's me, Sunset. I'm here with Fragment Hunter and we're all looking for you. What floor are you on,"_ Sunset mentally said.

 _"Sunset! I'm so glad to hear your voice! But, where are you,"_ Azalea 'said' to her friend.

Sunset's face went from an expression of confusion to slow realization before she was beaming with a giant smile. _"Can you hear me right now,"_ Sunset asked mentally.

 _"Yeah... Why do y- Oh my god! Is this another part of your Semblance,"_ Azalea cautiously asked before the same realization as Sunset.

"I'm telepathic! This is amazing," Sunset exclaimed with a giddy laugh.

"You're not insane, Sunset," Slate remarked. "But, randomly saying words like that and laughing would make you seem that way."

Turning to Slate and Layla, Sunset cleared up what she meant. " _Not 'psychopathic'. 'Telepathic'. I can talk with people with my thoughts! This can help when we lose our Scrolls,"_ Sunset said to them with her mind.

 _"Okay, that's pretty cool,"_ Slate and Layla both thought.

"Yeah, it is," Sunset agreed. _"Azalea. Leave a door open and a light on where you are. We'll find you that way,"_ Sunset telepathically told Azalea. "Come on, guys," Sunset instructed Layla and Slate as they continued down the hall. After a few minutes, they saw a light coming from an open door and Slate went ahead of the girls to make sure Azalea was okay. "Slate, hold on! You really shouldn't do th-," Sunset tried to warn the gunslinger, but couldn't do it in time as he entered the room.

Almost immediately, Slate stumbled back and held his hat in his hand to block his view of where he exited from. "S-s-sorry, Azalea. Didn't know that y-you were like that-t," Slate nervously apologized as he covered his face and looked away from the door.

"I-I-I-I-it's fine, S-s-slate. You d-d-didn't know I was doing that. I'm okay now," Azalea stammered as she let Sunset and Layla into the dressing room. The latter two tightly hugged Azalea in relief before they took notice of her clothes. While she kept her jeans, choker, and flannel shirt, Azalea discarded her old working boots for a newer stylish pair and started putting on a fitted version of her green sweater. She also wore her red bandanna next to her horns instead of covering them with it.

"N-n-no problem," Slate said as he looked at Azalea's new subtly changed look. "I like this style. It suits you," he complimented with slightly pink cheeks. At Slate's words, Azalea blushed and smiled as she looked away from him. Sunset and Layla saw the reactions of the two and giggled to themselves.

"Sooo, what happened," Layla asked.

"NOTHING! NOTHING HAPPENED," Slate and Azalea both declared at the same time.

"Azalea said that she was in a dressing room trying on clothes when I was finding her," Sunset said.

Layla nodded at the info and walked up to Slate before slapping him in the arm. "Stupid! Next time, listen to us! It's a good thing you're a gentleman and got out when you did," Layla scolded her friend and teammate. "Although, I wouldn't be surprised if you got an accidental peek and liked it. Azalea's a pretty girl."

"Can we please not talk about how Slate saw what bra I was wearing," Azalea asked as she covered her face.

"It IS a nice shade of blue," Layla mentioned. "But okay, we can stop talking about it now and head off."

"Not without finding what Sombra stole before," Sunset stated. "We need to find the crown and the sword, then we get out of here and return them to where they belong." Everyone agreed with Sunset and nodded. "Good. Now, let's split up and help the others. We'll stay in touch," Sunset said with a smirk.

* * *

 **Azalea's okay, has a new change to her wardrobe, and Sunset discovers that she can use her Semblance to talk to people with her mind. A lot is happening for Fragment Hunter in the course of one weekend. Now we just need to have them handle going against Sombra, Tremor, and Rouge.**

 **Can Fragment Hunter handle the thieves? Can they take back the King of Vale's crown? What about the sword that belonged to the Celeste Family? Find out more on "Sideline: Another Story" for the end of the current story arc.**

 **If you wanted to know the full names of Sombra's team, here you are.**

 **Smoke Shadow aka "Sombra"**

 **Oliver Electrum aka "Hermit"**

 **Kun Agate aka "Tremor"**

 **Veronica Moonstone aka "Rouge"**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	9. Fragment Hunter vs Team SMKE: Part 2

**Welcome back, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here with my next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story" and the conclusion to the "Phantom Thief" arc. With this, Fragment Hunter's fights with Team SMKE will end and we'll start to get into Volume 2 of the RWBY canon. After this, it means that there will be more characters that start coming for the Vytal Festival and a few other surprises as well. So, be on the lookout for those if you like reading about the adventures of Fragment Hunter.**

 **You'll never see it coming!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only thing I own is this story and the characters in Fragment Hunter and Team SMKE.**

* * *

As they searched through the factory, Lapis and Vixen were searching everywhere for any sign of Azalea or the thieves. However, Oliver Electrum was checking up on them through the security system he had set up. "Why did all but two of them have to be girls," Oliver muttered to himself before he started typing away at a keyboard and a new screen turned on. Picking up his Scroll, Electrum started to apparently play a video game until the screen showed Lapis and Vixen from behind.

Turning around, the two girls saw a handmade remotely controlled drone looking right at them. A humming sound was made by the drone before it fired lasers at them. Dodging out of the way, Lapis countered with a gust of wind from her trident while Vixen threw one of her iron fans at it. Oliver piloted the drone with precision and skill to avoid the attacks. "Nice try, girls. But, you'll need to do better than that," Oliver said to himself as he maneuvered the drone behind Vixen and shot lasers at her tail.

"OW! That stings," Vixen shouted as she inspected her tail. Thankfully, her Aura protected it from any singing and it proved that the lasers were weak. "Okay. Those lasers aren't that strong, so we just can't get cornered by that thing."

"It's probably because the drone is meant for indoor security. The lasers aren't powerful on purpose. That way, there wouldn't be any unnecessary collateral damage," Lapis observed.

Rolling to dodge more lasers, Vixen managed to grab the fan she threw earlier. "So, what do we do about it," the Fox Faunus asked.

"If it's dodging our attacks, that means it's piloted by someone. They have to see what they're doing," Lapis theorized.

"Well, let's take care of that," Vixen chuckled before she used her Semblance. Creating an illusionary blanket of clouds, Vixen was able to block the lights and leave the drone in the dark while she guided Lapis out of the way.

"Clever girls," Oliver said to himself before he changed the camera setting on the drone to follow after them.

* * *

After finding Azalea, Sunset, Slate, and Layla were all happy to find their friend safe and sound. Not only that, but Sunset was able to discover another ability of her Semblance. Being able to telepathically communicate with everyone, Sunset thought of a plan that allowed them to try and deal with the thieves. "Okay," Sunset began. "Time to split up and help the others. They've probably found themselves in fights, so let's see who's where," Sunset said to the other three with her.

Concentrating, Sunset used her Semblance to find where everyone was within the old factory. She sensed Vixen and Lapis were running from something, but she couldn't figure out what specifically. Finding Cereza and Celadon, she also sensed somebody battling them above the catwalk they were on and Cereza was getting impatient. Sensing Vinyl and Rebecca, Sunset was also able to feel somebody being cocky while they fought. Finally, she found Rua and Silver battling a third person who seemed to be having fun while in combat with them.

"I found them all," Sunset declared. "Lapis and Vixen are running from something, Cereza and Celadon are fighting in the catwalks, Vinyl and Rebecca are dueling someone, and there's this wild third guy fighting Rua and Silver," Sunset listed.

"I'll help Rua and Silver," Azalea declared and surprised the others.

"Are you sure," Layla asked as she returned Azalea's Scroll and weapon to her.

"I know who they're fighting and he did want to fight me earlier in the parking garage," Azalea mentioned. "Looks like you'll get your rematch after all, Tremor."

"Alright," Layla said. "Guess I'll help Cereza and Celadon."

"I have a feeling I know who Vinyl and Rebecca are fighting," Sunset remarked.

"So, that leaves me with either helping Lapis and Vixen or finding the loot," Slate presumed.

"Let's go," Sunset declared as she started to lead them back upstairs.

* * *

Silver and Rua were struggling against the power that Tremor possessed. Every punch he landed was able to push them back and take down their Aura levels considerably. Rua checked her Scroll to see that she and Silver were nearing red levels that would eliminate them from tournament matches. However, they were fighting in the real world now and Tremor was almost ready to end the battle. "This was a great fight, you two. But, it's my victory," Tremor declared as he got ready to deal another vibrating punch to the members of Team SLVR.

But before he could get close to Rua and Silver, Tremor felt something strike him in the head just out of his view and the impact sent him to the floor. Getting up, he tried to see what hit him, but there was nothing there. Feeling more strikes, he reeled back until he fell back onto the floor. Seeing the sand from the ruined punching bags, he grabbed a fistful and threw it around himself. When the sand stayed in the air like it was on something, Tremor saw what kept hitting him. "I _just_ got this sweater," Azalea complained as she stopped using her Semblance and brushed the sand off of herself.

"Azalea," Rua and Silver exclaimed as they saw their friend was okay.

"Smart trick with your Semblance," Tremor admitted to Azalea. "But, you can't always stay invisible like that. Enemies will manage to find you somehow, just like I did."

"Then, I'll just have to fight you here and now. No invisibility, no Dust, just ourselves," Azalea stated as she challenged Tremor in hand-to-hand combat.

As Rua and Silver's jaws were wide open at Azalea's declaration, Tremor started to laugh. "HAHAHAHAHA! You got a deal, kid. Looks like our rematch is the main event," Tremor exclaimed as he removed his Drill Bit Knuckle Dusters. "LET'S RUMBLE," Tremor shouted as he started throwing a few jabs and straight punches.

Dodging the strikes, Azalea countered with a clothesline to Tremor's chest. The attack was able to push him back and left him open to a leg sweep that sent him to his knees. Quickly adjusting his stance, Tremor countered Azalea's next punch with an uppercut as he stood right back up. After Azalea hit the ground, she got back to her feet and jumped into the air to nail Tremor with an axe kick. Blocking the attack, Tremor felt the sheer power behind it and pushed Azalea back before she could use her free leg to hit him.

"You're good, kid," Tremor complimented his opponent. "But, here's a tip for all of you. Try and stay out of an opponent's reach and take advantage of attacks that fail to connect. You'll have them end up wasting stamina that way," he explained.

"Why are you telling us this," Rua asked suspiciously.

"You kids are giving me a good fight. I should at least pay you back with some battle advice," Tremor said before he started to continue attacking. Azalea saw his next attack was going to be a heavy punch, so she started to use what Tremor just said. Using minimal energy to step away from his attacks, Azalea kept dodging the brawler's punches and saw that he was beginning to exhaust himself from the fight he was in before.

Taking a chance, Azalea went in for a grab and lifted Tremor off his feet before slamming him on the ground hard enough to have him actually bounce from the impact. With a swift kick, she juggled him higher into the air before jumping up and smashing Tremor back to the ground. As Tremor got back onto his feet and saw Azalea heading at him with another punch, he countered by tackling her and delivered a hook at her legs to leave Azalea defenseless as he kept punching.

Tremor kept punching Azalea back and was ready to deliver one final punch to end his combo, but Rua teleported in to help her friend. "C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER," Rua exclaimed as she kicked Tremor in the face to knock him backward. However, Rua's body began to shimmer with a purplish-red sheen to signify that she used up the last of her Aura for the battle with that last teleport. "Get him, Azalea," she cheered as her friend got back on her feet.

After Rua's intervention helped her get out of that last attack, Azalea landed another punch at Tremor's head before delivering a few more blows to his face and chest. Tremor tried to punch at Azalea twice, but she managed to see his punches were slower and more predictable than her own, allowing her to dodge easily. Hitting Tremor a few more times, Azalea finished with an uppercut to his jaw that knocked him back a bit.

Using his Semblance to create a vibrating field around his fists, Tremor began to attack Azalea again. Dodging the attacks, Azalea kept using Tremor's advice about avoiding an enemy and wearing their stamina down. Eventually, Azalea went for a counterattack, but Tremor used another hook on her legs that left her in the air and followed up with a vibrating uppercut that knocked up before hitting the ground. Tremor tried to stomp down on Azalea, but she rolled out of the way and began to fight again.

As Azalea and Tremor's fists clashed with each other, Tremor's Semblance began to crack the floor when combined with the power of both fighters. Both of them kept getting a few hits on each other during their current clash, but every time that they punched each other's fists, the concrete floor beneath them began to crack away more. As the two went for a big punch against the other, Tremor managed to evade Azalea's haymaker and stepped behind her. Landing a few more punches to daze Azalea, Tremor began to wind up for one last Semblance-enhanced punch. "You won't hear the full ten count," Tremor exclaimed as he slugged Azalea in the face hard enough to knock her to the floor.

Hitting the ground, Azalea laid flat on her stomach and struggled to get back up. She felt her Aura was still active, but Tremor was a powerful opponent. _"Is this the end,"_ Azalea thought to herself as Tremor began to slowly approach her from behind. _"Are we going to lose to this guy? Am I going to stay down like this? After my friends came here to rescue me? ...No,"_ Azalea thought as she managed to get back on her knees. "I'M NOT DONE YET," Azalea shouted as she slammed a fist to the floor. As her punch left a fist-shaped crater from the impact, the room's lighting seemed to become brighter.

"Wait, what," Tremor asked in confusion as he covered his eyes from what he was seeing. Rua and Silver had to shield their eyes as well because all three were looking at Azalea, but her entire body was lit up like a lighthouse beacon and started to blind everyone who looked directly at her. Distracted by the light coming from Azalea, Tremor was left open to several fast punches that began to eat away at his remaining Aura. Attempting to counter with another Vibration punch, Tremor missed and Azalea punched his arm hard enough to have Tremor recoil from the pain. With him open again, Azalea started to throw dozens of punches at Tremor's face until his Aura was depleted and Azalea finished the battle with one last uppercut to his chin before knocking him to the ground with a lariat.

After defeating Tremor in combat and knocking him unconscious, Azalea was breathing heavily and her body's glow faded. With the light back to normal, Rua and Silver went to check on their friend. "What happened? What was that light," Silver asked.

"I think... that was me," Azalea guessed. "I think it was my Semblance. I was getting pissed that I would lose after you guys came to save me and something just started... burning in me," the Cow Faunus explained what she felt earlier.

"Either way, you beat him," Rua exclaimed as she pumped her fist in the air.

Azalea checked her Aura level on her Scroll and saw that she just entered the red. "Just barely. If he got a few more punches on me when I got up, I would've lost," she mentioned.

"We should still get out of here. We saved you and that's all that mattered to us," Silver stated as he and the girls left the building.

* * *

Celadon and Cereza were having a difficult time dealing with Rouge as her Semblance allowed her to change shape. Rouge's current 'keep away' strategy was also annoying Cereza to no end because she was avoiding any projectiles that came at her and the limited space of the catwalk restricted the movements of the rookie Huntresses. "Stay still," Cereza shouted as she fired more bullets at Rouge. Dropping down and using her Semblance to gain a tail, Rouge avoided the attack before using her knives to slash away at Cereza again.

Damaging Cereza, Rouge jumped back and transformed her knives back into pistols. Firing at Celadon as she used her whip spear, the thief was able to get a few shots in on her and took out a small chunk of her Aura. "I have to say, I haven't enjoyed myself like this in a long time," Rouge said with a flirty tone. "You two really know how to give a girl a good time."

"As flattered as I am, I don't really think that it would be a good idea for me to be with a criminal in the way you're implying," Celadon said before she used her Semblance to fire more gemstones at Rouge. Dodging the attack, Rouge flipped over and tried to hit Celadon with a bicycle kick. However, Celadon raised her hands in front of herself as gemstones were formed in front of her like a barrier.

As Rouge's foot landed on the gem, Celadon fired it at the wall to try and damage the thief more. But, Rouge was quick and jumped off the gem and kicked off of where she would've impacted. As Celadon's attack shattered and dissipated against the wall, Rouge jumped back onto the catwalk and grappled with Cereza. Knocking her tonfa to opposite sides of the bridge, the thief was able to mount Cereza and used her Semblance to have two vine-like tails to hold her pistols while her arms were free to subdue the Huntress-in-training. "I'm afraid our time together has come to an end," Rouge said as she started to strangle Cereza.

"Then, how about we switch partners," Rouge heard a new female voice ask before she was pushed back. Catching her breath, Cereza saw that it was Layla who pushed her attacker away. Using her Semblance, she retrieved Cereza's tonfa with Telekinesis and handed them back to her leader. "Kind of stupid of you to get caught like that," Layla bluntly said as she pulled out her lamp-shaped gun.

"Did you find Azalea," Cereza asked as she ignored her friend's comment and stood back up.

"Of course," Layla replied with a smile. "Now, let's handle this girl," she declared as she aimed her gun and shot a Fire Dust bullet at Rouge. Avoiding the flames, Rouge managed to retrieve her weapons before countering with a few shots of her own. Deflecting them with her scimitar, Layla blocked the attack and allowed Cereza to approach for a punch.

Taking flight by using her Semblance to form bat-like wings, Rouge avoided the punch and Celadon followed up with an attack from her whip. Narrowly avoiding the spearhead, Rouge was left open to Layla using her gun to fire a stream of Ice Dust that froze her wings. With the extra weight, Rouge was forced to land on the catwalk and deactivate her Semblance. As she did that, the girls opened fire with their ranged attacks and Rouge was bombarded with gems and bullets. After taking that much damage, the thief was panting as she stood back up. "Azalea sure does have skilled friends. I know she'll be a great Huntress if she's on your levels," Rouge commented.

"I'm sure she would love that," Celadon replied. "But now, I think we should end this."

"Couldn't agree more," Cereza said as she aimed her tonfa again.

Just as Rouge was about to make her next move, a bright light was shining from underneath the catwalk. "What is that," Rouge asked herself as the four girls peered over the edge of the rail. Thinking fast, Celadon and Layla used their Semblances to create a large gemstone in the middle of the air that captured the light and used it to blind Rouge. With the thief distracted, Cereza used her Time Mirage to deal one last string of combo attacks that knocked Rouge out cold.

"Any idea what that was," Layla asked.

"No clue. Let's just get out of here now," Cereza answered as the three girls started to head down the closest set of stairs.

* * *

While Lapis and Vixen were still running from the drone, Oliver Electrum was sitting back at his computers to observe everything going on in the factory as the drone chased the girls down. Seeing that Azalea's friends found her and went off to help the rest of the intruders, Oliver just focused on piloting the drone. "No use hiding, you two," Oliver said to himself. "My drone's camera can find you in the dark, through walls, and even through those illusions of yours."

As Lapis and Vixen ducked into an empty room, the drone passed them and had to turn around. Taking the chance, Vixen used her fans to send a wave of embers at the machine before running off again. Despite the sudden blast of Fire Dust knocking the drone around, Oliver was able to stabilize his robot and fired a few lasers at the Fox Faunus. "Take this," Lapis shouted as she used her trident to send shards of ice at the drone.

"Not today," Electrum said as he entered a combination on his Scroll. As he tapped the screen, the drone immediately turned and fired enough lasers to destroy the ice. As the pieces of ice fell to the ground, Lapis got hit with a few of the lasers as she ran away to regroup with Vixen. "These girls are going to run into a dead end eventually," Oliver muttered to himself as he had the drone follow them.

As the girls ran through the hall, they ducked into a room and shut the door. As they heard the drone fly past, they thought they were safe until they saw where they ended up. "Uh oh," Lapis and Vixen said as they noticed three more drones activating and charging lasers at them. "RUN!"

"Just like a video game," Oliver chuckled to himself as the three extra drones turned on. Using his Scroll, Electrum began to enter commands on his Scroll until the video feed he had split into four different ones. "And you two just ran into a monster house," he smirked as the drones began to fly on their own. "Thank you, auto-pilot."

"These drones are going to kill us before we find Azalea," Vixen said as she ran with her fans ready to counterattack.

"I don't think these ones are lethal. This is a thief's hideout," Lapis mentioned before deflecting a few lasers with her trident. "Why would they kill if they just stole things? These drones are probably for security and are piloted by someone with a connection to them." As she explained this, a few more lasers hit her and started to leave burned holes in her clothing. "Now, I'm going to need a new outfit," Lapis muttered to herself as she saw the damage.

"How are we supposed to find them," Vixen asked. "It's not like we can ask for an error in the CCT." As the girls of Team SLVR rounded a corner, they found themselves trapped by a dead end and the drones hovered in front of their only escape route. "Ah, Grimm paste," Vixen uttered as she saw the drones charging their lasers.

Before the robots could fire though, a single gunshot was heard and each drone went down from the blast. Seeing where it came from, Lapis and Vixen smiled to see Slate managed to save them. "We found Azalea. Let's go," the gunslinger said as he holstered his revolver. As the three went on through the building, something caught Slate's eye as they passed a particular door. Breaking it down, Slate and the girls entered to see a young man in front of a few monitors as he tapped away on his Scroll.

"Come on! What happened," Oliver said to himself before he heard a gun cocking behind him. "Crap!" Seeing Slate with his revolvers aimed at him, Oliver immediately raised his hands to show he wasn't going to hurt them. "I'm defenseless! Don't shoot," he exclaimed.

"Vixen, keep an eye on him," Slate told the Fox Faunus. "Something tells me he's hiding something in this room. Lapis, help me search."

* * *

As Vinyl and Rebecca tried to attack Smoke, he was able to either dodge their attacks or use his 'Phantasm' Semblance to have their strikes harmlessly go through his body. Countering with blows from his cane, Sombra was able to knock Rebecca down constantly while Vinyl was forced to use her hard light disks as shields to block. Using her Semblance, Vinyl kept trying to blast Smoke Shadow to find when he deactivated his Semblance. However, he was quick enough to dodge each energy projectile and managed to get in close to her.

As he went to strike with his cane, Vinyl headbutted Smoke before he could hit her. Recoiling from the damage, the Raccoon Faunus stumbled back a little before getting kicked by Vinyl as she dropped to the floor. Getting hit in the legs, Smoke fell down and saw that Rebecca was heading at him with her wakizashi drawn for another attack. Using his Semblance, Sombra managed to avoid getting stabbed and rolled into the next room through the wall. "Crap," Rebecca muttered before she prepared to defend herself.

Phasing through the walls and striking the girls with his cane while it was sparking with electricity, Smoke Shadow managed to chip away at their Auras with impacts and shocks. Rebecca and Vinyl were panting as they tried to stand back on their feet. "You girls don't know when to quit, do you," Sombra sighed as he idly waved his tail and leaned on his cane.

Before the two members of Team SAFR could try and attack, they heard something. _"Get down! I'm going after him,"_ they heard Sunset call out despite Rebecca and Vinyl not being able to see her. Listening to their leader, they fell to the floor and Smoke was confused by their action. Hearing something behind him, he turned around to see a giant torrent of fire coming right at him. Eyes wide at what he saw, Sombra quickly used his Semblance to avoid damage from the flames, but he still felt the intense heat and had to shield himself. As he took a deep breath, Sombra was hit in the stomach with a sword swing and the attack took out a good chunk of his Aura.

"Whoa! That was rad," Vinyl exclaimed as she saw Sunset standing in front of Smoke with her sword in her hand.

"What was that," Rebecca asked as she questioned why they heard Sunset without her alerting Sombra.

 _"I found out something new with my Semblance,"_ Sunset telepathically told her teammates. _"Now, we can communicate with our thoughts."_ After explaining her newly discovered power to Vinyl and Rebecca, Sunset pointed her blade at Smoke as he stood up. "Smoke Shadow, it's time you pay for your crimes."

Smoke looked at Sunset with interest and twirled his cane around as he spoke to her. "Nice shot, miss. But, I'm afraid that you won't be able to take us to prison," he said.

"We'll see about that," Sunset said as her jacket's sleeves and back began to light up. With wings of fire appearing behind her back, Sunset went into battle with her sword and flames. As Smoke and Sunset clashed, sparks of fire and electricity flew off their weapons during their initial strikes. As they swung their weapons at each other a few more times, Sunset threw her hand forward and prepared to snap her fingers. Sombra looked down at the floor and gasped as he saw a circle that flashed different shades of yellow, red, and orange while giving off a high-pitched sound like a bird's cry.

With a snap of her fingers, Sunset made the circle erupt in an explosion of fire that engulfed Smoke Shadow. As the flames died down, the Raccoon Faunus barely hurt by the blast as his coat and tail were shown to be slightly singed. "Yeesh, you're a fiery gal... I like that," Sombra said to Sunset as he tried to dust the ash off of himself.

"Flattery and puns will get you nowhere," Sunset warned as she readied her blade again. As she attacked Smoke again, a trail of flames followed her swing and the thief had to use his Phantasm Semblance again. As the flames burned where he stood, Sombra jumped back away from the fire and took deep breathes. Sunset and the others noticed this before the three of them began to continue fighting.

Vinyl prepared her Hard Light Projection Braces and Rebecca grabbed a handful of shuriken as Sunset started the attack. The leader of Team SAFR threw a punch at Smoke and followed up by spinning quickly to swing her sword, but Smoke dodged the attacks and soon saw Rebecca's shuriken flying at him. Using his Semblance, he let the blades go through his body and hit the wall. As he ran past Rebecca, Vinyl tried to kick Sombra to try and hurt him with a roundhouse before his body became intangible again. As her leg flew through Smoke Shadow's head, Vinyl smirked and the thief realized that it meant bad news for him as loud music blared through the speaker of Rhythm Scratch.

"AAARGH," Smoke screamed as the noise caught him off his guard and Vinyl took her chance by kicking him again in the stomach. As Smoke stumbled back, Rebecca followed up with a few punches to his kidneys and kicked him away toward Sunset to let her get in a few punches and kicks. As Sunset ended the onslaught with another explosion from her Fire Dust jacket, Sombra was forced to dodge the blast and the attack left a hole in the wall. "You girls are good," Sombra said as he coughed. "How'd you figure out how to beat me?"

"You kept taking deep breathes before and after you turned intangible," Sunset stated. "I figured that you can only be a 'ghost' for as long as you held your breath. So, my flames could help deal with that by burning through the air you already had. And to get you out of your 'Phantasm' faster, Vinyl could get you to exit it with some good music. Then, we just needed to make sure that you couldn't immediately phase through anything," Sunset explained.

Smoke panted as he took in Sunset's words and looked back at her. "Smart, strong, skilled, and pretty. You single," Smoke asked as he smiled at Sunset. Caught off-guard by his question, Sunset stepped back a bit and the thief used a smoke bomb to cover his tracks as he fled out the hole in the wall. "I feel like that we'll see each other again, gorgeous. Until next time," Sombra said as he escaped.

As the smoke cleared, Sunset, Rebecca, and Vinyl saw that Smoke Shadow was nowhere to be seen. _"Crap. He escaped,"_ Sunset telepathically said to Fragment Hunter. _"Come on, let's just get out of here."_

 _"Sunset, is that you? When did you get in my head,"_ Cereza asked mentally.

 _"I think the more important question is, 'Why can we hear you while we're outside, Cereza',"_ Silver retorted.

 _"We've got a lot to talk about when we get back,"_ Azalea said over the telepathic conversation.

Sunset could only smile because they managed to rescue their friend. However, the next voice said something that caught her attention. _"Guys, we found something you might want to see,"_ Slate telepathically said. _"Meet you outside with what we got."_

* * *

As Fragment Hunter was waiting outside for the police, they began to discuss what Slate discovered. "You found them," Sunset and Celadon exclaimed in surprise as they saw Slate holding both the crown stolen from the museum and the bejeweled sword that was shown on the news footage they saw before.

"Yup," Slate said as he handed the weapon to Sunset. "They were in a room with the hacker that controlled the drones Lapis and Vixen fought."

"You _really do_ need a new outfit, Darling," Celadon said as she saw all the damage the drones' lasers did to Lapis' clothing.

"I know," Lapis bluntly stated as she looked back at the holes in her shirt and sleeves.

"Can we get back to the whole 'Sunset can get in our heads' thing," Silver reminded. After a brief explanation of how Sunset discovered her telepathic abilities while they searched for Azalea, everyone was amazed at how Sunset's Semblance was growing. "Man, can you imagine all the crazy awesome stuff we could do with our Semblances if they were all like Sunset's," Silver asked in amazement.

"It would be cool," Vinyl remarked as she put her headphones on and started to listen to her music.

Soon, the Vale Police Department arrived and the teenagers explained everything. Listening to what they said, the police took the previously stolen items from Sunset and Slate to be processed. "Thanks for your help with this, kids. But even if you're all training Huntsmen and Huntresses, this wasn't the smart thing to do," an officer said.

"Some of us weren't thinking straight because our friend was taken. But, we managed to find them as soon as we could," Slate replied. "Somebody had to do something and you were all busy with the museum itself."

"Either way, just know that you can't solve everything by yourselves," the policeman said as he went to talk with his boss.

As Fragment Hunter stood around, they all had the same thing on their minds. "This year is _definitely_ going to be interesting," Cereza mentioned. "And it isn't even the second semester yet. We're going to have plenty to look forward to."

After another minute, a few officers exited the factory to speak with one of the detectives. "There were signs of a struggle, but nobody's inside there anymore," the cop stated. The information of Sombra's crew not inside giving Fragment Hunter the same feeling that they would meet back up with them again.

* * *

Leaving Vale's borders, a Bullhead was shown flying over the mountains below. "Well, I can say that was a fun time," Smoke Shadow remarked as he flew the aircraft.

"Yeah, for you guys maybe," Oliver dryly stated as he started to look at something on his Scroll. "Should we head off to Mistral now?"

"I say that we find some small jobs first. Maybe go to Kuchinashi," Rouge suggested. "Those girls are going to make great Huntresses," she mused as she looked out at the view of the landscape.

"I'm looking forward to a rematch with Azalea," Tremor said as he unwrapped a candy bar. "Her friend kicked me in the face when me and her were in a one-on-one match. I'm itching to go again," he stated before taking a bite out of the chocolate.

"We'll meet up with them some other time," Smoke replied. "Right now, we'll stay away to get stronger and do a few minor jobs. I'm looking forward to seeing those lovely ladies again, anyway." The four thieves discussed more of what they were going to do as the Bullhead flew off past the horizon.

* * *

In the middle of the night at the village of Higanbana, a poker game was being held in the local tavern. Some of the players were a few locals while the others were traveling through town. As the game continued, conversations changed topics frequently and a waitress in a red dress stopped by at times. "Can I get you boys anything else," she asked as she gave one man a glass of whiskey.

"I'll take a hard cider," a deep voice said from a darker corner of the table. The waitress nodded and went back down to the first floor to get his order.

"As I was saying," the man who got the whiskey said as he prepared to continue his story. "After I got back to the shop, I saw that one of my employees tried to sneak a kitten into the store because it was raining. They thought I didn't notice and kept trying to hide it from me throughout the whole day," he chuckled at the story. After having some of his drink, he continued speaking. "Seriously, the whole thing was like it was ripped from TV. Especially when she tried to hide it in her uniform and it started purring loudly!" Everyone at the table laughed at the story before they looked at their cards. "Teenagers. Am I right? You ever have to handle them, Granite?"

"I've had my fair share of those kinds of antics," the man in the shadows remarked as he signaled he was checking in the game. As the next card was revealed, half of the table folded their hands and three were left. "I'll raise," the man said as he placed some more chips on the table and leaned into the light slightly enough to show his red eyes.

One man was sticking his tongue out in concentration before he called the bet and placed his money in the pot. The man with the whiskey downed the last of his drink and went all in. "I hope that you two can match this," he said with a slight slur.

"I'm out," the third man stated as he folded. "What about you, big guy," he asked the red-eyed man in the dark.

Looking at the pot and the man's face, 'Granite' pushed all of his chips forward. "All in," he laconically stated before the last cards were shown. As their hands were shown, the first male had an ace high while the shadowed figure revealed a pair of queens. As he realized that he couldn't continue playing, the first man smacked his head onto the table. "Don't beat yourself up over this," the winner said as he collected the chips and the waitress brought his drink. "Thank you, miss," he said before removing the bottle cap with his teeth.

"Doesn't that hurt," one player that previously folded asked.

"Nope. Had plenty of practice doing this," 'Granite' stated before continuing the poker game. After several rounds, he managed to win the entire match and soon headed off to the inn with his winnings. However, a man in the tavern saw that 'Granite' was leaving with a lot of money and followed him. As they exited, the man pulled out a pistol and placed it against 'Granite's' back.

"Give me the money and I won't pull the trigger," the gunman said with a slur. 'Granite' could easily tell that he had too much to drink to use common sense and just sighed in exasperation. "Give me your money and I won't shoot!"

Turning around slowly, 'Granite' looked at his would-be mugger and could see him wobbling a little. "You can't even get one shot on me," he calmly declared.

"Don't even try to get out of this," the mugger exclaimed. As he jabbed the gun into 'Granite's' stomach, the weapon sudden fell to the ground and took the gunman's hand with it. "AARRGH," the man screamed in pain as his hand was pinned to the pavement by his weapon. As he looked back up at his 'victim', the male saw that a foot was pulled back and he felt the impact of a heavy boot meet his face.

As the mugger was knocked unconscious, 'Granite' sighed and shook his head in disappointment. "When will they ever learn... You don't try and mug a professional Huntsman," he said to himself before taking the pistol and removed the bullets. As he entered the inn, he spoke to the manager. "I need a room for the night. Just need to get some sleep before going to Vale."

"Going there for the Vytal Festival this year," the manager asked in curiosity.

"Yes. And a few other things," 'Granite' answered. "Let's just say that I'm meeting someone important there and she needs to be taught a few things."

* * *

 **Geez, this took forever! Sorry about the wait, but life and writer's block happened. Now that the "Phantom Thief story arc" is complete, it's onto something for the Volume 2 canon for Sideline! And if you're reading both this and my RWBY Rangers story, I've got something special planned for Halloween.**

 **For the fights, I have some music that would work GREAT with those scenes. For Azalea vs Tremor, listen to "I'm Back (To Rise)" from Killer Instinct. "It's All About Me" from Anarchy Reigns is for the fight with Rouge. And Smoke Shadow fights with "Last Surprise" playing in the background. Check those songs out if you want!**

 **Who was that mysterious man? How did he stop that mugger before kicking him? Why is he going to Vale? Find out next time on "Sideline: Another Story"!**

 **Until then, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	10. Terracotta Gaia

**Welcome to the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story," readers. In this chapter, Fragment Hunter will be meeting up with somebody important and you'll see why. The setting of this chapter is a little bit into the second semester of Beacon Academy. In comparison to the show, the food fight between Team RWBY and Team JNPR just happened the previous day.**

 **Ready? WALLOP!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my Original Characters**

* * *

It was another day at Beacon Academy and the second semester was beginning as exchange students from the other three Huntsmen Academies arrived. After the confrontation with Smoke Shadow and his gang, Fragment Hunter were enjoying themselves in their classes. Azalea's small change in her wardrobe made her feel a little better about herself and the students at Beacon took notice of it while she also caught the attention of some of the transfer students. She seemed a little bit more confident about herself and was contributing to her classes more to the joy of the teachers.

One day, Fragment Hunter sat with Team RWBY and Team JNPR at lunch to talk about things that happened to them lately. _"So, you're actually a Faunus, Blake? That actually answers a few questions,"_ Sunset telepathically said to the ninja-like fighter of Team RWBY.

 _"Now I know why your name is so familiar to me,"_ Azalea added in. _"Our dads grew up together."_

"That's interesting," Lapis noted. After her previous outfit was ruined in Fragment Hunter's attempt to rescue Azalea, Celadon and Cereza took Lapis shopping for new clothes. She kept her shorts, armor, boots, and earrings, but had new clothes to go with them. Lapis now wore a teal-colored scale pattern skirt over her shorts and had a purple crop top that had an opening with fishnets that showed off a bit of her chest. While they shopped, Lapis also decided to get a blue tattoo of her symbol on her left thigh.

"So, tell us about that Faunus boy you met and helped you against the White Fang, Blake," Vixen said without noticing Silver become irritated. "Was he hot?"

"Uhh," Blake said as all eyes were on her and her friends began to ask about Sun Wukong.

"Please answer the question," Vixen said to get the information before Sunset interrupted.

"SO, did you hear that they're bringing more teachers because of the Vytal Festival happening soon," Sunset mentioned to help a nervous Blake. _"You're welcome,"_ she mentally said to Blake.

"I did hear some rumors about some new teachers to help during the second semester," Cereza said. "I don't know any specifics, however."

"I guess we'll find out when we see them," Ruby said before munching on a plate of cookies.

* * *

One morning, Fragment Hunter was preparing themselves for a combat class in the morning. However, they ran into a problem they have encountered one too many times since they all came to Beacon Academy. "Azalea! Wake up," Layla shouted as she tried to push the Cow Faunus out of her bed. "We're going to be late if you keep sleeping in like this!"

"I keep saying this... I thought that farmers were early risers," Sunset said in exasperation. "Why is it that she can sleep like this?"

Blaring music at Azalea, Vinyl failed to wake her friend up and decided to just leave for breakfast without the sleeping Faunus. Before Rua and Vixen did anything drastic to wake up Azalea, they were dragged out of the room by Silver and Lapis. "Come on, we'll just let her snooze," Silver said to his team.

Cereza and Layla just sighed before the two of them left their teammate in dreamland. Slate, Sunset, Celadon, and Rebecca all decided that it would be better for them to let Azalea get some sleep and if she got in trouble for being late, they tried to get her up. "I know this is selfish, but I don't want to get detention with Professor Goodwitch. So, we'll let Azalea get her forty winks," Slate said before he adjusted his hat and walked out the door.

"See you later, Sleeping Beauty," Sunset told Azalea before the rest of Fragment Hunter left for combat class.

* * *

When the eleven students got there, they saw several students from other schools alongside them. They saw the blonde Monkey Faunus that Blake told them about hanging with three other boys that must have been his team, a boy that looked like a jazz musician talking with a Cat Faunus dressed like she was going to a rave, and a few other teams from Mistral and Vacuo.

As they waited for Professor Goodwitch to arrive, Fragment Hunter were either on their Scrolls, listening to music with Vinyl, or were worried about Azalea because she hasn't shown up yet. As the next few minutes passed, Vinyl started another song before the doors slammed open and startled everyone. Vinyl was so surprised that she accidentally had her music playing through Rhythm Scratch and a heavy metal tune started to play as a man walked into view.

He was 7 feet tall with a very muscular build that had scars all over his arms, neck, and torso, but everyone thinks that he would also have scars on his back. He had a dark complexion, black hair that reached down to his shoulders, black stubble on his chin and jawline, and intimidating red eyes. The man was easily identified as a Faunus thanks to the large bull horns on his head that looked like they added 6 inches to his already imposing size. He wore a heavy pair of brown boots, worn-down blue jeans, an open black vest, and a long stylish red coat. Upon closer inspection, everyone could see that he wore a belt with a buckle shaped like a metallic bull's skull and he wore a silver ring in the same shape on his right hand. He also carried a large claymore with crystals in the pommel and hilt, which was designed similar to the bull skull on his buckle and ring.

As he looked around the room, everyone was whispering about the new arrival and wondered who he was. "Who is this guy?"

"Is he a new teacher for the semester?"

"I wouldn't want to meet this guy in a dark alley."

"Where's Professor Goodwitch?"

"This guy looks like trouble."

Fragment Hunter was also wary of the Bull Faunus, but thought he was here for the Vytal Festival like most of the transfer students. "Who's this ruffian," Celadon asked in suspicion. "Why is he here instead of Professor Goodwitch?"

"Celadon, you should judge a book by its cover," Sunset said to her teammate. "I'm enough proof of that with my powers and how I look."

As the Bull Faunus looked around the room, his gaze fell on Vinyl and he spoke up. "As much as I like the music, it's time for your morning combat class to start, Miss Aurum," his voice boomed through the amphitheater. Vinyl immediately listened to him and turned her music off before he continued speaking. "I'm sure that you're all wondering who I am and why Glynda's not here. My name is Terracotta Gaia and I have been called here alongside a few other Beacon alumni to help with teaching all the students that have come for the tournament."

Everyone began to get excited about Huntsmen and Huntresses that attended Beacon teaching them just for the Vytal Festival. "This is going to be so cool," Silver exclaimed with his tail wagging behind him like a dog.

"Yeah, it is," Rua agreed as she pumped a fist in the air.

"I'm still wondering about Azalea," Sunset said as she looked around the room and didn't see her friend. "I wonder if she could sneak in with her Semblance," she mused to herself, not knowing that Terracotta overheard what she said.

"Now, I believe it's time to choose who will fight for today. I hope that you're all wide awake and limber because this lesson isn't going to be like your previous classes," Terracotta said before he pointed his sword at the stands. "Team SLVR and Team SAFR, get down here and grab your weapons. You're going to be first today."

After a few minutes, the eight students came back with their weapons and prepared to battle each other before Terracotta stepped between them. "Now, who said you would be fighting each other," he asked. As the two teams looked at each other in confusion, they didn't see Terracotta remove his red coat and reveal the vambraces on his forearms. "You'll be fighting _me_ ," the Faunus declared as he got into a ready stance with his claymore on his back.

"Wait, what," Sunset asked in surprise before she and the others saw the readout for all eight of them and a separate Aura display for Terracotta. "But, this isn't how Good-" Sunset tried to say before Terracotta ran toward the teenagers for a heavy punch. Dodging out of the way, the members of Fragment Hunter saw that Terracotta left a small crater from where he slammed his fist into the floor. _"That's some power,"_ Sunset mentally noted.

 _"Then, let's hit him before he can use it on us,"_ Rua said through the telepathic connection before bringing out her arm blades. Going in for a stabbing punch, Rua's attack missed when Terracotta seemed to vanish before her eyes. "What the hell," she exclaimed out loud before getting hit in the back with a punch. The impact knocked her to the ground and before she could get up, she was lifted off the ground and thrown at Rebecca.

Using their Semblances, the two purple-haired girls disappeared in a cloud of smoke before Silver and the rest of the rookie Huntresses prepared for the next attack. Rebecca threw a handful of shuriken at Terracotta, nailing him in the chest with them while Rua teleported behind him for a kick to his head. The attacks hit him, but they saw that the damage barely fazed him as he just cracked his neck and stared at Rebecca's smoke cloud. In one swift motion, Terracotta pulled the sword off his back and gave it a swing powerful enough to kick up a gust of wind before placing the weapon on his back again.

The wind blew away the smoke, leaving Rebecca surprised by the power that Terracotta had before he ran at her. With a powerful clothesline, Rebecca was sent flying into Celadon and Vixen before all three crashed to the floor. Sunset, Silver, and Vinyl all drew their weapons and began to try and slash away at Terracotta, but he was blocking all their attacks with his vambraces. _"This guy's tough. But, I guess that's what we get from a Beacon alumnus,"_ Sunset telepathically told the others.

 _"Yeah. We need a plan if we want to at least lower his Aura,"_ Silver said mentally. After being pushed back by Terracotta, Silver unfolded his chainsaw into its whip mode and swung it at the Bull Faunus. The chain wrapped around his vambrace and Terracotta saw that Silver was going to do something. Pulling hard on the chain, Terracotta disarmed Silver and his weapon was slammed into him as a counterattack. _"There goes that strategy... Just like with that Tremor guy,"_ Silver mentally groaned out.

Sunset and Vinyl tried to attack Terracotta with their swords as he removed Silver's chainsaw from his arm. However, he countered by backhanding Sunset into Vinyl and sent the two to the floor. Rua began to teleport all around Terracotta in hopes of confusing him, but he calmly waited for a moment before quickly turning around and grabbed Rua by her jacket before she could hit him from behind. "You're becoming predictable, Miss Amaranth," Terracotta bluntly stated before throwing her into Silver.

As they crashed to the ground, Celadon used her Semblance to try and hit Terracotta with a widespread blast of gems. The Bull Faunus acted quickly and spun his sword around to deflect the shots before Celadon's whip spear coiled around the blade and he was disarmed in one swift motion. As she prepared to strike him again, Celadon's spear suddenly felt like it became heavier. In the blink of an eye, Terracotta punched at Celadon hard enough to send her flying into Rua. "Why are you so heavy," Rua and Silver complained as they felt Celadon on their backs.

"First, never say anything about a lady's weight. It's a private matter. Second, I don't know why I'm heavier than normal. I can't get up," Celadon said to her friends before Terracotta continued to fight Vixen, Lapis, and Team SAFR. With her fans alight, Vixen tried to send fireballs at Terracotta to try and hit him from a distance. However, he managed to dodge the first volley and recovered his sword before Vixen attacked again with Lapis helping with a whirlwind to increase the temperature of the flames. Terracotta smirked slightly before he swung his sword with enough power to create a blade of air that easily negated Lapis and Vixen's combo attack.

Terracotta followed up by rushing at Vixen faster than she could track and hit her with several jabs before flipping her onto her back. Everyone saw that Vixen's Aura level had been lowered enough to eliminate her from the fight and Lapis turned to face Terracotta. "No more 'Miss Nice Lapis'. Time to get serious," she said before inhaling deeply. After she stopped breathing in, Lapis began to scream loudly and everyone had to cover their ears from the intense sound. As the attack continued, Terracotta was pushed backward by silvery-blue soundwaves and his feet skidded across the floor.

The Bull Faunus kept his sights on Lapis before he smiled and marched forward. With heavy footsteps, he managed to approach Lapis and pulled his arm back while her eyes were still closed as she screamed. With a single punch to her face, Lapis was knocked unconscious by Terracotta and everyone's ears were still ringing. "Powerful Semblance you have there, Miss Ondine. But, you need to control it better," Terracotta said before he turned to his next opponents.

Rebecca acted quickly and drew her wakizashi before running toward her opponent. However, Terracotta countered by grabbing Rebecca's arm and putting her into a wristlock. As soon as her blade was dropped, Terracotta kicked it away and released the ninja. Using her Semblance to create a smokescreen, Rebecca hid away while Sunset charged at the Faunus with her sword while Vinyl did the same with her claws. Terracotta dodged by jumping into the air and flipped forward to prepare for an axe kick to the girls below him. "Move," Sunset shouted as she and Vinyl jumped away from the heel drop.

The ground below shattered under the impact of Terracotta's foot and debris flew at everyone in the battleground. Team SLVR and Team SAFR had to close their eyes to avoid getting blinded by airborne dust and were left open to Terracotta's next assault. With fast and heavy punches, the Bull Faunus managed to take out enough of Vinyl's Aura to lower it into the red levels. Continuing his onslaught, Terracotta found Rebecca just inches away from her sword and attacked her. Rebecca tried to block his attacks, but the force behind them kept pushing her away until her Aura levels lowered to the red like Vixen and Vinyl. "You should improve your hand-to-hand skills, Miss Haze. It'll make it easier when someone figures out your stealth tactics," Terracotta explained to Rebecca before turning to Sunset.

"Just you and me, Miss Blaze. I've heard a lot about you," Terracotta said.

"Like what," Sunset asked as the sleeves of her jacket began to light up.

Terracotta saw that she was ready to fight seriously with her Fire Dust talents and chuckled. "Your teacher was my teammate back when she attended Beacon. I'm sure she taught you well, but you can always improve yourself," said Terracotta.

"Oh, I think she taught me well, Mister Gaia," Sunset stated as she spread her arms out and prepared for explosions around the Bull Faunus.

"Please, call me 'Terra', Sunset. And I'm not so sure that's true," Terra replied. "After all, those scars on your back are enough proof to show you weren't the best student at Garrison Academy." Hearing what Terracotta said, Sunset was surprised by his words and her concentration faltered. With her focus broken, the flames building underneath Terra faded as he rushed at the girl. Lifting her above his head, Terracotta slammed Sunset to the floor hard enough to bounce off it. While she was in the air, Terra jumped above Sunset to follow through with a powerful elbow drop.

When Sunset fell to the ground, her Aura flashed with a fiery red sheen to show that her Aura had been depleted from the attacks she took. She groaned as she tried to pick herself up off the ground. "Miss Celeste, did you get the number of that freight train," Sunset muttered in a daze before falling back to the ground.

Terracotta turned to the students who saw the battle and began to lecture them about the fight. "As you can see, there will be enemies that you cannot defeat immediately. There will always be someone stronger than you," Terracotta stated. "There are numerous ways that you can improve yourself in order to survive against a strong foe. You can think more creatively, improve your reaction times, gradually become stronger physically, and even just run away to fight another day."

Everyone was captivated by Terracotta's words as Team SLVR and Team SAFR recovered from their fight with him. The eight teenagers stood up and winced as bruises began to form all over them. "Each of you all can improve yourselves like what I said during the fight. While I'm here, I'll be assisting anyone who wishes to partake in extra credit duels with me for tutoring," Terra stated to Fragment Hunter and the other students. Before he could continue talking, the doors slammed open to show Azalea came running inside and was out of breath.

"Sorry... I'm late... Professor... I hope that I can make it up," Azalea panted before she looked back up to see the damage from the battle that happened. Seeing her friends beaten down and bruised along with craters in the floor, Azalea looked around the room before she saw the Faunus gazing at her. Azalea's eyes widened at the sight of the muscular behemoth of a man before hearing him speak.

"I wouldn't call myself 'Professor', but I'm more than capable of being a teacher," he chuckled. "I see you're still sleeping in, my little flower." Everyone was confused by what Terracotta called Azalea, but they were even more confused when she jumped at him and hugged the man while squealing in excitement.

"I can't believe it! You're here," Azalea exclaimed happily. "I'm so happy to see you, Dad!"

As soon as they heard that last word, everyone else in Fragment Hunter had wide eyes and dropped jaws. Celadon was gibbering like something snapped in her head, Vinyl's sunglasses slipped off her face and dangled from one ear as she stared, and Slate looked like he had just seen a ghost. Everyone in the room who heard what Azalea said were shocked and could only say one word in question. **"DAD!?"**

* * *

"Let me get this straight," Sunset said as she held an ice pack to her head. "THAT'S YOUR FATHER," she screamed as she pointed to the man who resembled a minotaur that sat on Slate's bed in Team FCSA's room.

"Yup," Azalea answered.

"The minotaur right there?"

"Yup."

"The guy who kicked our collective asses like it was nothing but a walk to the store?"

"Yup."

Everyone just kept looking back and forth at Azalea and Terracotta while Sunset's 'interrogation' happened. Silver, Slate, and the other girls in Fragment Hunter were surprised that Azalea's father showed up to teach students for the Vytal Festival Tournament. "I guess Azalea really _does_ take after her mother like she said," Layla said as she looked at Terracotta.

"It's only natural that my princess looks like her beautiful mother," Terra stated as he placed her hand on Azalea's head.

Azalea blushed in embarrassment over Terracotta complimenting her in front of her friends. "Daaaad, stop it..."

"I've heard a lot about the ten of you from Azalea's letters to home," Terracotta said to Fragment Hunter before turning back to Sunset. "And Aurora has been a lifelong friend since we attended Beacon together as members of Team NOCT. She's been in constant communication with me and has always talked about her prized pupil," he said to Sunset. "That includes the incident from your field trip back in Garrison Academy."

"Incident," Lapis asked in curiosity.

Sunset sighed as she lowered the ice pack she held and removed her jacket. She turned around and moved her hair out of the way to reveal two faded scars near her shoulder blades. Everyone looked it as she explained their origin. "I wasn't always the most social person and I thought I could do everything by myself. I was proven wrong when my class at Garrison Academy was taken for a field trip to help train against Grimm. I separated from my group and I ended up fighting a large pack of Grimm," Sunset recollected. "I ended up burning through my Aura about halfway through, no pun intended, and had to run for my life. A Beowolf scratched my back and left me with these scars before I was cornered."

"What happened next," Cereza and Silver asked.

"As I was crawling backward, I hit a tree and the Grimm would've had me for lunch," Sunset continued. "Lucky for me, Miss Celeste was able to deal with all of the Grimm in a near instant when she found me. After that day, she told me about her days in Beacon and said that I couldn't do everything by myself. I had to rely on others when I needed to."

"I'm sure that she'll be happy to hear that after meeting all of your friends," Terracotta said. Sunset smiled at what Terracotta said and thought of when she would meet her teacher again.

Vixen noticed that Slate was looking nervous and giggled to herself. "Hey, Slate? What's on your mind," she asked with a mischievous tone.

"Nothing," Slate replied a little too quickly as he looked away from his friends and Terracotta.

"Oh really," Vixen continued. "Because you've been pretty quiet since we dealt with that Phantom Thief."

"Phantom Thief," Terra inquired.

"Well, one day when we were returning from this ramen stand in town, Rebecca saw something and we found out it was a calling card," Layla explained. "I think we still have it," she mentioned before everyone started to dig through their pockets.

"Here it is," Rebecca said as she revealed the calling card of Smoke Shadow. "We later learned what it was and did some digging when we learned that this guy stole a sword from someone in town."

"After that, we tried to stop him from stealing from a museum. We failed," Vinyl admitted.

"We later tracked the Phantom Thief down to his hideout after learning Azalea was taken by his associate," Silver said. "We've never seen Sunset rage harder than Rua until that day," the Wolf Faunus mentioned.

"Then, we looked for Azalea and most of us got into fights with the thieves," Layla continued. "Me, Slate, and Sunset found Azalea and we went to help the others after making sure she was safe." After Layla told that, Azalea and Slate blushed a bit and awkwardly rubbed their heads. Terracotta noticed the reactions of his daughter and her teammate before gesturing to continue the story.

"When we were getting our asses handed to us by the big guy, Tremor, Azalea showed up and started to fight him," Rua explained. "It was an awesome fight! Punches flying everywhere, the building was shaking from the power behind their attacks, and Azalea managed to blind the guy when her Semblance made her shine like a lighthouse."

"Really," Terracotta said with intrigue. "Looks like I'll be giving Team FCSA some extra lessons later to see it for myself."

After everyone finished telling Terracotta about their battles with Smoke Shadow's crew, Terra was glad to know how well everyone was coming along. "So, what were you doing before you came here, Dad," Azalea asked.

"Well, after a job I did around Higanbana in Anima, I stuck around the local tavern for a poker game. I managed to win, but a drunk bandit tried to mug me," Terracotta explained. "I kicked him in the face," he bluntly said. "They just never learn."

"Hehehe... yeah," Slate nervously agreed before gulping loudly.

Terracotta looked at Slate again and saw the boy flinch under his gaze. "Anyway, your mother and all of the farmhands are doing well," Terra said to Azalea. "Same with the animals. Dante and Drei miss you, Princess."

"Who," everyone else asked.

"Two of my dogs," Azalea answered. "Drei's a Corgi and one of the most adorable puppies you'll ever see!"

"Didn't Ruby and Yang say they had a Corgi named 'Zwei'," Rua asked as she remembered one of their conversations with sisters of Team RWBY.

"Yup. Drei was born in the same litter as him," Terracotta explained. "Why do you think we named him that?"

"And what about 'Dante'," Sunset questioned.

"Oh, he was a hunting dog that Dad found when I was younger," Azalea explained. "Mom helped fix him up because he was hurt and he's been sticking around the farm ever since. Dante always protected me from Grimm and bullies while I was still in training before Sanctuary Academy."

"That's just precious," Celadon commented. "I hope we can meet him one day."

Terracotta chuckled a little. "I get the feeling he'd love all of you," he said. "Well, I say that we all go get something to eat. Where was that ramen stand you were at before?" Fragment Hunter soon went off to enjoy the rest of their day with Terracotta. With him around, they felt like the days until the Vytal Festival were going to be a challenge.

* * *

 **There you go! Another favorite Original Character of mine is now introduced. Azalea's father, Terracotta Gaia. With him involved, there will be more training for our heroes in Fragment Hunter. Especially when a few new teams visiting for the Vytal Festival Tournament confront Fragment Hunter and some of them have a past with Azalea. If you want to find out who they are, stick around for the next few chapters when I get them written up.**

 **BTW, Terracotta WAS 'Granite' if you didn't figure it out yet. If you're still wondering about how he pinned down that mugger in the previous chapter or messed with Celadon in the fight, you'll get an answer eventually.**

 **For Terracotta's entrance, the music that Vinyl played would be the intro to "Holy Diver" by Dio. Terracotta's own music style that would play during his scenes would mostly be rock genre or heavy metal. Just picture him kicking Grimm ass while the "Metal Gear Rising Revengeance" OST or songs featured in "Brutal Legend" plays during the fights.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick out.**


	11. Jaded Rivals

**Hey everyone. WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". In this chapter, we'll meet the newest antagonists for Fragment Hunter to face off against. And unlike Smoke Shadow and his crew, these four are NOT as friendly as them. Mostly because three of them have a past with one of the members of Fragment Hunter.**

 **Dark clouds loom ahead...**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my Original Characters.**

* * *

Things were intense with Terracotta helping train Fragment Hunter and the other students. His extra credit sparring sessions were tough for everyone, even for his own daughter. No matter who partook in the lessons, somebody got hurt by the end of it. Some of Fragment Hunter believed his methods of training to be... dodgy.

"DODGE," Terracotta yelled as he kicked Cereza hard enough to send her flying into Silver and Sunset. As the three were piled on top of each other, Rua went after him with Azalea and Vinyl helping her. But, they failed to harm Terracotta when he grabbed Rua by the foot and threw her into the others. Drawing his sword, Terra quickly turned to Slate and Celadon as he swung the blade and screamed. "DODGE!"

"Oh crap," Slate exclaimed before quickly ducking under the blade and jumped away from Terracotta's reach with Celadon. As they joined up with Rebecca and Vixen, Slate turned to face Azalea as she was getting up. "Was your training like this at home," Slate asked the horned Faunus girl.

Azalea thought it over and remembered all the times she sparred with her dad. Thinking back to the matches on the farm, Azalea soon snapped out of it when she heard her father go in for another swing of his sword. "More or less, Slate. But, Dad's really giving us some intense training," Azalea said as she avoided the blade.

"DOOOODGE," Terra shouted as he punched Azalea on the top of her head and sent her to the ground.

"Dude, that's your daughter," Vinyl exclaimed as Azalea fell to the floor. "So not rad."

"No, I should've paid attention. Besides, Dad's like this with my Uncle Ventus, too," Azalea said as she pushed herself off the ground.

"I think that's enough training for today," Terracotta said as he placed his sword on his back again. "Now, what have we learned?"

"Scream 'dodge' to distract opponents," Rua sarcastically asked with a smirk.

Terracotta just stared at Rua for a moment before stretching his arms. "On second thought, I think a little more training is in order," he stated.

"Wait," Rua exclaimed before Terracotta grabbed her head.

"DOOOOOOOOOOOOOODGE," he yelled as he brought Rua's face down to his rising knee strike. As Rua fell to the ground in pain, Fragment Hunter checked up on her. "What lesson do we need to keep practicing," Terra asked as Rua was helped to her feet by Lapis and Vixen.

"Always make sure to dodge," Fragment Hunter said in unison.

"Very good. If you dodge enemy attacks, you'll be able to exhaust them or their ammunition much quicker. Especially if you use minimal energy," Terra advised.

"Tremor actually said that to me during our fight in the factory," Azalea mentioned.

"Well then, I'll need to get busy for the next class. I'll see you all later," Terra said before the twelve teenagers headed out of the amphitheater.

"I think I deserved that hit," Rua muttered as she stumbled out the door.

* * *

Soon, Fragment Hunter were all enjoying their time between classes and after recovering from their sparring session with Terracotta. "Another relaxing day at Beacon Academy," Layla said as she started stretching. "I thought it would be a little more hectic with all the transfer students, but things are pretty good."

"Same here," Silver agreed. "Do any of you recognize some students from the other schools," he asked the members of Fragment Hunter who were not from Vale.

"Nope. Not really," Slate said. "I kind of kept to myself and my family back in Vacuo."

"I don't know anyone who came here," Layla told her friends.

"I haven't seen anyone I know from Sanctuary Academy yet," Azalea mentioned. "I'm kind of relieved about that, too. There were a lot of kids who picked on me there."

"Geez. I thought you said Mirabelle barely had any discrimination against Faunus," Sunset asked.

"Sanctuary isn't in Mirabelle. It's a bit to the south of the town," Azalea said as she covered her chest with her arms. "And there were these three bullies that were the worst of them all. They kept calling me horrible things like 'Livestock', 'Veal Cut', and..."

"Is that the Dairy Cow," Azalea heard somebody say a little bit away from her and she flinched as she recognized the voice. "Hahaha! It _is_ her!Check it out, girls. It's Azalea," the voice said with a laugh and everyone turned to see four students from Mistral in their school uniforms. The boy who spoke was 6 feet tall, had short black hair that began to fall over his black eyes, a fair-skinned lean build, and was chewing some gum. "I didn't think we would see each other again after graduating Sanctuary," he said before blowing a bubble and bit down on it.

"Neither did I," said one of the two girls with a seemingly pleasant voice that hid a malevolent undertone. She was 5'6" with a slightly tanned hourglass figure with average proportions, purple eyes, and a half-blue half-green hime cut that reached her waist. "Who knew we would run into our favorite little cow?"

"How's it been, Holstein," the second girl asked with a sneer. She was shorter at 5'4" and was paler than the other two. She had short blonde hair that reached her ears, brown eyes, and a petite figure with a small chest. "We missed you the last few months. I think it'll be good to catch up on old times."

Azalea was panicked and curled up into the fetal position with tears forming in her eyes. Fragment Hunter all saw this and stood around their friend to keep her safe. "Just who are you and why do you know Azalea," Sunset asked with a glare.

"I don't think there's anyone from Sanctuary Academy who doesn't know about Azalea here," the shorter girl said as her brown eyes briefly turned green when she blinked.

"Sorry for not introducing ourselves," the black-haired boy apologized. "I'm Jet Pitch. These girls are my old friends and teammates from Sanctuary Academy. Aoi Lobelia, the taller one, and Envy Sinn, the smaller girl. And the guy over there is Duke Cobalt, our last teammate," Jet told Fragment Hunter as he pointed behind himself.

Duke was standing quietly as he watched the 'reunion' between his teammates and their old acquaintance. He was 6'2" with a muscular frame, tanned skin, and a scar above his left eyebrow. He had short brown hair in a buzzcut and blue eyes. As he looked at his team, he only scoffed and rolled his eyes at them before looking up at the clouds above.

"Now that we've introduced ourselves, who are all of you," Aoi asked as she flipped her hair.

"Azalea's friends and teammates," Cereza said as she stared down Aoi with distaste.

"I didn't think she would have any friends aside from those farmhands and that bird girl," Aoi giggled as she looked at all of Fragment Hunter. "I see that some things haven't changed with her despite the small change to her wardrobe," she said as she saw Silver and Vixen.

"What is _that_ supposed to mean," Silver asked as he started to growl at Aoi.

"Just that she's hanging around others and hiding behind them," Jet said as he turned to Silver. "Seriously, she's trying to be a Huntress but keeps running scared whenever a bug shows up. It's pathetic," he and the girls laughed.

"I think you better leave us alone if you know what's good for you," Rua warned as she stepped forward and cracked her knuckles.

"Like we're scared of a shrimp like you," Envy stated before grabbing Rua's forearm. As soon as she did, Rua felt like she was getting weaker until Envy let go. "We need to head off anyways. Take care, Holstein," Envy said as she turned around to the rest of her team. "And be careful of bugs. We how much you hate them."

"Those three are annoying. What was with them," Rebecca stated.

"I don't know. Maybe Azalea knows who they are," Lapis suggested before turning around. "Hey, Lea. Who were those g-" When Lapis and the others turned around to talk with Azalea, she was nowhere to be seen. "Where did she go?"

"We'll find her," Sunset said. "Split up and find her. Stay in communication with Scrolls or the telepathic link."

 _"On it,"_ Fragment Hunter agreed with their thoughts broadcasted among the eleven of them before splitting up into their original teams.

* * *

 _"Azalea, we know you can probably hear us,"_ Layla stated with her mind. _"Come on out."_

"This is getting nowhere fast," Cereza commented. "Find anything," she asked on her Scroll.

"No. Maybe she's at the dorms," Vixen suggested.

 _"We'll check there next,"_ Sunset said mentally. After a while, the three teams reached the door to Team FCSA's room and tried to open it. However, it was locked and they couldn't get inside. "I think we found her," Sunset dryly said before knocking on the door. "Open up, Azalea. We want to talk."

There was no reply and Sunset knocked again. "Lea? Are you alright," Layla asked her teammate.

Listening close, they could hear sobbing and sniffling from Azalea before she answered back. "No..."

"Come on, Freckles. Let us in and help you out," Cereza said. Azalea only kept crying and didn't open the door for her friends. "Azalea, open this door! I am your team leader!"

"Should I go get my chainsaw," Silver asked before Rebecca stepped forward. Taking Celadon's hairpin, Rebecca began to pick the lock of the door and managed to open it within a few seconds. "Or we could do that," Silver commented as he handed Celadon her hairpin.

Everyone stepped inside Team FCSA's dorm room to see that Azalea was curled up in a blanket and sobbing to herself. "Azalea, what's wrong? We saw you curled up when those transfer students appeared," Lapis asked.

"Leave me alone," Azalea told them. "I said that I could handle this kind of thing by myself."

Everyone was confused by what Azalea meant, but Sunset remembered she said the same thing when Cardin insulted her and ran away from Doctor Oobleck's class. "Azalea, I told you that I would be here to help you when things like Cardin happened. So, what's going on," Sunset asked.

"I don't want to talk about it," Azalea told them before turning away from Fragment Hunter.

"Don't give me that," Sunset exclaimed as she pulled the blanket away from Azalea. "I can feel that you _want_ to tell us who those three were. But, you also won't. Why not tell us?"

"You wouldn't understand," Azalea yelled at Sunset. "You don't know what I've been through!"

"Then, tell us! I want to know what's got you so scared," Sunset shouted as she grabbed Azalea by the arm. As she did that, Sunset felt a surge of energy flow through her and her bright teal eyes turned completely white. The last thing Sunset heard before everything faded away was her friends calling out her name.

* * *

Sunset groaned as she held her head and stood up. "Ugh... Where am I," she said to herself as she looked around. Sunset's eyes widened as she saw that she was no longer in Beacon Academy's dorm rooms, but in the courtyard of a different school entirely. "Huh? 'Sanctuary Academy'? Isn't that the name of Azalea's old school?"

Sunset suddenly heard a loud scream coming from inside and quickly headed toward the noise to see what was going on. As soon as she got inside, she saw that several students were laughing at a girl that was completely soaked and had pieces of balloons in her hair. "Hahahaha! I guess Tits here needs a change of clothes," a voice Sunset heard earlier said. Turning around, she saw Jet Pitch was in a uniform for Sanctuary Academy and tossing a water balloon in his hand.

"Hahahaha! Would this make her a Sea Cow," Sunset heard Aoi Lobelia say before she threw another water balloon at the poor girl. The balloon popped on impact with the horns on her head and water splashed all over her.

"Nah. She's still a dumb Dairy Cow," said Envy Sinn as she threw two more balloons at the girl and hit her in the chest.

Sunset was getting mad at this display and the fact that nobody was stopping it. "Quit it," she shouted as she attempted to grab at Envy and Aoi. But to her shock, her hand passed through them and the desk she fell toward. "Wh-what's going on," Sunset asked as she looked at her hand.

"Please... stop it," the drenched girl asked as she shivered. Moving her wet hair out of her face, Sunset was surprised again when she saw familiar green eyes and freckles along with the black horns on the girl's head. She was watching Azalea being tormented by Jet, Aoi, and Envy at Sanctuary Academy.

* * *

 **And with this chapter (which is shorter than the others for a few reasons), we now have Team JADE from Mistral. Not only that, but a look into Azalea's past and how much she was bullied.**

 **Why is Sunset seeing this? Will she be able to help out Azalea when she escapes? Find out next time on "Sideline: Another Story"!**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out.**


	12. Chain of Memories

**WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". When we last left off, Team JADE from Mistral met Fragment Hunter and Azalea ran away when the transfer students said they knew her. After finding the Faunus girl in the dorms, Sunset wanted answers as to how Azalea knew Team JADE. Now, Sunset is somehow at Sanctuary Academy and just witnessed Azalea being bullied by most of Team JADE. Let's see what's going on.**

 **It's hard to let it go.**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my original characters.**

* * *

Sunset was scared and confused by what she was seeing right now. One second, she was in Team FCSA's dorm room at Beacon Academy trying to get Azalea to explain why she ran off when three transfer students claimed to know her. The next moment, she was watching the Cow Faunus get pelted with water balloons by the same three students from Mistral, but they were at Sanctuary Academy. "What's going on?! What's happening," Sunset kept saying to herself. She couldn't be heard by anyone and whenever she tried to touch something but the floor, her hand would phase through it like she had Smoke Shadow's Semblance.

"Please... stop it," a soaking wet Azalea meekly asked as she moved her hair out of her face. When Sunset got a closer look, she noticed that Azalea's bangs were longer and could hide her face even when they were dry. She was also shorter than Sunset by an inch or two, but Sunset couldn't piece anything together yet.

"Maybe we should lighten up on the balloons, girls," Jet Pitch said after he threw his last one at Azalea. "Maybe we could get a new set of clothes for her?"

"Doubt there's anything in Dairy Cow's size," Envy stated as she approached Azalea and squeezed her breast hard. "Look at these things. She'd probably stretch out any spare shirts with these knockers," she said as Azalea flinched in pain before pushing Envy away. "Seriously, are all Cow Faunus like this? I bet she leaks milk!"

"If her mother's the same way, at least we know where it came from," Aoi laughed.

Every student in the room laughed at Azalea as Jet, Envy, and Aoi kept bullying her. Sunset was getting angry and Azalea herself began to cry as she used her Semblance to turn invisible and run away. _"This always happens,"_ said Azalea's voice as it echoed all over the room. As Sunset looked around for where the voice was coming from, she saw Sanctuary Academy fade away and was soon replaced by a white void. _"Those racist bullies always pick on me and torment me because of how I look,"_ the voice said again. _"It's been like this for years! I just want to get back home and spend time with Bianca."_

Sunset soon saw that the void turned into an old ice cream parlor and Azalea was sitting at a booth with a Dove Faunus with white feathered wings, blue eyes, and short blonde hair. "Azalea, those bullies won't mean anything to you when you graduate and attend one of the Huntsmen Academies like you always talked about," the Dove Faunus said. "Besides, you said you're one of the best in class."

"So are Jet and Envy," Azalea said before downing another spoonful of vanilla ice cream and her bangs fell over her eyes. "They always hang with Aoi and find ways to call me names or pull mean pranks. They're not going to stop, Bianca. They always make me feel like I'm worthless and ugly."

"You know that's not true, Lea," Bianca said. "You're just as beautiful as your mother and you know it," she told Azalea as she moved the timid girl's bangs out of the way. When Sunset heard this, she saw a female figure appear next to Azalea for a moment. It was barely visible, but Sunset felt like there was a warm and kind feeling coming from it before it vanished.

"I just don't want them to be in my life anymore," Azalea said. "The name calling, getting shoved to the floor, the slurs, all the things they say about my family, and all the pranks. I want them to just stop. It's people like them that make the White Fang act out."

"Azalea, this is about _you_. Not the White Fang," Bianca reminded. "These bullies are just picking on you and only badmouthing the other Faunus in Sanctuary. They see you as a target because you're not defending yourself."

"If I _do_ try and attack outside of sparring and practice, their comments about me being 'a wild animal' will just get proven right," Azalea sadly stated as she finished off her ice cream. "The only thing I can do is wait for the next month before school ends. Then, I won't see those three ever again."

Sunset was upset that Azalea's belief was wrong and that the bullies who tormented her have returned. Soon, the scene changed from the ice cream parlor in Mirabelle to Sanctuary Academy again. As Azalea opened up a locker to put away some books, a buzzing sound was heard and the girl had a look of fear on her face. When the locker opened, a small swarm of Rapier Wasps flew out of the locker and began to chase after a scared Azalea when she dropped her books. Jet, Aoi, and Envy only laughed at the scene in front of them as Azalea kept screaming and ran out the door. _"Why Rapier Wasps? Why did they do that? I'm scared to death of them because of what happened to me as a kid,"_ Azalea's voice echoed through the area.

Sunset soon saw that she was in an orchard of sorts and saw Azalea again, but much younger as she looked to be about four years old. "Am I... _inside_ Azalea's memories," Sunset asked herself as she saw the young Faunus climbing a tree. As the girl climbed, she didn't notice a nest of Rapier Wasps on a branch and accidentally knocked it to the ground. When the nest broke on impact, the insects flew toward Azalea and began to sting her repeatedly. Azalea kept screaming for help as the bugs swarmed around her and she slipped off the branch she was on. As she fell, a Peregrine Falcon Faunus managed to swoop in and save her before taking her to a farmhouse. "Oh man," Sunset muttered. "That _would_ be traumatic. That just makes things worse with Grimm like Lancers and Death Stalkers."

The orchard vanished and soon was replaced with Azalea, who trimmed her bangs, on a boat and overlooking the sea. "This is it, Azalea. You're going to Beacon Academy just like Dad did," she said to herself. Sunset saw that Azalea was wearing her baggy sweater, working boots, and hid her horns with a bandana. This tipped off Sunset that it was a memory of before arriving at Vale. "I'm going to be a Huntress and Bianca's going to be a singer. Maybe we'll meet each other when she _does_ become famous." Azalea sighed sadly as she looked at the water. "At least I'm far away from Jet and those girls." That was the last thing Sunset heard before seeing more images and memories of Azalea's torment flash before her eyes. And then, everything went dark.

* * *

"Sunset! Are you alright," Layla asked as she saw Sunset remove her hand from Azalea. "You looked really weird when you grabbed Azalea."

"Rapier Wasps," Sunset suddenly exclaimed.

"WHERE," Celadon and Azalea both shouted in fear as they grabbed the closest person near them. Celadon grabbed onto Silver's arm while Azalea crushed Slate in her attempt to cling onto a friend for safety. Everyone flinched when they thought they heard Slate's rips cracking.

"That's one of the reasons you're scared of Jet and those girls," Sunset explained. "They've been picking on you for years and Rapier Wasps in your locker was one of their last harsh pranks on you. You were four years old when you were nearly stung to death by a swarm of them and that's why you ran off screaming when you opened your locker."

"H-how did you know all of that," Azalea asked as she eased her grip on Slate.

"I think my mind reading is getting stronger. I just saw your memories. Like I actually went inside your head when I touched you," Sunset explained. "I'd be more excited about it if I didn't see so many cruel things happen to you."

"What exactly did they do," Rua asked with a growl in her voice.

"You're all not going to like this," Sunset warned before she explained everything she saw in Azalea's memories.

After everyone heard what Jet, Aoi, and Envy did to Azalea when they were younger, most of Fragment Hunter was absolutely livid. "I don't think those three are even human beings at all," Celadon exclaimed as she had an angry glare on her face.

"It's people like them that make the White Fang want to hurt humans," Silver stated as he started to growl like a wolf. "They make me sick."

"My pranks are normally just for fun. I'd never stoop that low," Vixen told everyone.

"Azalea, I had no idea you suffered like that," Layla said as she hugged her friend while Vinyl placed a hand on Azalea's shoulder.

"Should we go and tell Professor Ozpin about these guys," Lapis asked. "You know... _before_ Rua breaks free and gets herself detention again for beating up a team of bullies?"

"WILL YOU GUYS LET ME GO ALREADY?! I'M GOING TO PUMMEL THEIR FACES IN," Rua screamed as she struggled to get free from Cereza, Rebecca, and the blanket keeping her tied up.

"Calm down, love. Otherwise, you'll end up coughing up fabric for the next few days," Cereza warned.

Rua just muttered angrily for a bit before talking again. "Then why does Slate get to go and fight them," the punk-styled girl asked.

Everyone was confused by what Rua said about Slate until they noticed he wasn't in the room with them. "What do you mean by that," Azalea questioned.

"He left like two minutes ago while Sunset was telling us about Azalea's memories. I also saw the look on his face and I've seen that look before," Rua explained.

"What's she talking about," Rebecca asked.

Sunset and Azalea looked at each other before Fragment Hunter's leader decided to use her Semblance to check up on Slate. _"Slate, where are you? What are you doing?"_ No reply came from Slate, but Sunset could feel his emotions and they were powerful. She could feel the anger coming from Slate through her connection to him and it was directed toward one goal. "We need to make sure that he's okay. I think he's going to fight those three jerks on his own," Sunset told everyone.

* * *

Slate was _livid_ at how his teammate and partner had suffered at the hands of those three transfer students. He didn't like seeing Azalea upset and he had defended her since even before becoming partners at the initiation test. He was stomping down the courtyard and everyone who saw him immediately got out of his way. When Team CFVY saw him, they could see the anger in Slate's viridian eyes and tried to stop him. "Where are you going," Coco Adel asked.

Slate looked at the second-year Beacon team and only said three words, "I'm hunting bullies."

"Cardin's actually been pretty tame lately," Velvet said in reply.

"That's not who I'm talking about," Slate stated. "Where's a Haven Academy student named Jet Pitch," he asked.

Team CFVY looked concerned for Slate, but told him where to go. "He and the rest of Team JADE went to get some practice in," Velvet answered. "Try looking for him at the amphitheater."

"Thanks," Slate said before leaving for his destination. _"Those jerks are going to pay for what they did to Azalea,"_ he thought to himself as he continued marching toward his targets.

* * *

 **And with this chapter, Sunset has discovered a new power of her Semblance while everyone learns of Azalea's past. And while everyone is taking in the information, Slate is ready to fight Team JADE for what they did to his partner. Next chapter will have a new fight scene, so get ready for some action!**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	13. Luck of the Draw

**WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story" and this one is more action-packed. After the last two chapters, we'll get to see Team JADE in action against Slate Quartz. If you're wondering why I chose Slate to fight them, I'm sure that you'll figure it out/like the reason. But, the rest of Fragment Hunter is worried about why he decided to go off and fight them. So, let's see if Slate will be fine on his own.**

 **DRAW!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my Original Characters**

* * *

Slate was heading towards the amphitheater where Team CFVY said that they saw Jet Pitch, Aoi Lobelia, and Envy Sinn. His viridian eyes were hidden by his hat, but whoever saw him marching by could tell that he was angry. Soon, Slate made his way to the amphitheater and saw Team JADE talking with each other as they inspected their weapons. He also noticed that Duke Cobalt wasn't with them and that the three bullies have changed out of their Haven Academy uniforms.

Jet wore a black jacket with a silver chestplate and pauldrons, black jeans with a stylized tiger emblem on the right shin, black fingerless gloves with pieces of metal on the backs, and a pair of combat boots. He was using a brush to clean a pair of hook swords while he chewed on a twig. "I wasn't expecting to see Azalea here. Guess it's going to be just like at Sanctuary," Jet told the girls.

"Yeah. I wonder what we should do this time? We got a good laugh from those Rapier Wasps in her locker that one time," Aoi said as she placed a Dust crystal into her staff. She wore a short green kimono-like outfit that ended at her thighs and had a blue petal design that resembled lobelia flowers. She also wore a pair of sandals similar to Vixen's and they were decorated with the same lobelia design as her outfit. "Maybe we could shred her clothes so that walks around like the Dairy Cow she is?"

"That won't work. We wouldn't be able to get into her dorm room," Envy explained. She wore a sleeveless qipao dress that was a dark chartreuse color with black details that resembled snakes, had black shorts underneath, and wore short green heels. She inspected her jian sword and swung it around to test its weight after fixing it up. Her sword's hilt was designed similar to a snake and when she flicked her wrist, Envy's jian separated into a whip sword that she swung around to test. "We could always just humiliate her in battle," Envy said with a sneer as her eyes briefly turned green.

"How about you fight me instead," Slate told the bullies as he stepped forward for them to see him.

The three bullies saw the anger in Slate's eyes and just scoffed at him. "Why would we do that," Jet asked.

"Because of this," Slate said as he swiftly drew his revolvers and fired three shots at Envy and Jet's feet. They quickly jumped back and had their weapons ready to deal with Slate as Aoi started to spin her staff around. The Dust Crystals in the staff began to spark with electricity and when Aoi pointed it at Slate, a bolt of lightning fired out to zap him. However, Slate was able to catch onto Aoi's attack and jumped over the bolt before it struck him. Landing on the other side of Team JADE, Slate began to unload his revolvers at them and damage the three.

Recovering from the damage, Envy was the first to start the counter-attack as she ran toward Slate with her jian. She slashed away at him to try and land a hit, but Slate kept dodging the sword before kicking Envy in the stomach to knock her away. When Envy landed on the ground, Jet spat out the twig he was chewing on and rushed at Slate with his hook swords. Before Slate tried and defend himself against Jet, Aoi used her Dust Staff to create a gust of wind that distracted Slate while pushing Jet forward. Jet began to slash away at Slate with his swords in a combination of attacks before ending it by trying to stab Slate with the hilt of his sword and punching him back with the crescent guard enhancing.

Slate's Aura protected him from getting injured by the sharp point, but he still took a beating and Jet laughed at him. "Is this really the best that you can do," Jet taunted. "Azalea might be an animal, but at least she can fight. Then again, all she does is hit something hard and has no technique. Not to mention that she just runs and hides when she's losing."

"Shut up," Slate shouted as he grabbed at his guns again and aimed at Jet. Firing Dust rounds, Slate shocked Jet with Lightning Dust bullets and dealt major damage when they hit his chestplate. As Jet tried to recover from the damage, Aoi went in for an attack and hit Slate with her staff a couple of times before knocked him away with another gust of wind. Reloading his pistols, Slate took aim and fired at Aoi before she deflected the shots by spinning her staff around. Seeing his shots failing, Slate changed up his strategy and replaced his ammo as he nimbly dodged attacks from Envy's whip jian and Aoi's staff.

* * *

"Where _is_ he," Sunset asked as she and Azalea searched the courtyard for Slate. _"Find anything, you guys,"_ Sunset asked with her Semblance.

 _"Nope. He's not in the dining hall,"_ Silver mentioned.

 _"Can't find him in town,"_ Celadon stated. _"But there's a boutique that has a sale on dresses this week, so that's a victory."_

 _"Zilch,"_ Vixen answered.

 _"Nothing here,"_ Vinyl replied.

"Dammit! Where's Slate," Sunset swore.

"Slate? We just told where to find Team JADE," Velvet said as she heard Sunset and approached the girls.

"You did? Where are they," Azalea asked.

"They're in the amphitheater," Velvet answered.

As Sunset and Azalea ran toward their destination, they contacted the others. _"We found out where Slate might be! Go to the amphitheater,"_ Sunset instructed the other members of Fragment Hunter. When Sunset and Azalea reached the building, they saw Slate was dodging attacks from Aoi and Envy as Rua teleported in with Celadon. "Glad you guys could make it," Sunset said. "Slate looks like he's in over his head."

As Slate continued to dodge the girls he fought, he succeeded in changing his ammunition to a new set of Dust bullets. Jumping above them as Jet joined in the assault, Slate spun above the three and fired Ice Dust bullets as he looked down at them. When the mist cleared from the attack, Jet's legs were encased in ice while Aoi and Envy were completely frozen. Jet growled at Slate and began to chip away at the ice with his hook swords, but Azalea was worried about the other two.

"Guess you were wrong, Sunset," Rua said. "Slate was able to handle himself against these three. I thought it would be different since I felt weaker when that Envy chick grabbed me earlier."

Azalea's eyes widened at the info and she turned to Rua. "Envy grabbed you and you felt weaker," she asked in a panicked tone.

"Why's that important," Celadon asked as the other members of Fragment Hunter joined the group.

"Because of Envy's Semblance," Azalea explained. "She can drain your Semblance and use it as her own for a while!"

Everyone was shocked to hear that one of Azalea's bullies had a powerful ability and all exclaimed the same thing. "WHAT?!" Soon, they saw Envy vanish from the block of ice in a flash of dark green light and kick Slate in the back as she teleported behind him.

"Anything else you want to share with us in case we end up fighting these guys in class or the tournament, Farm Girl," Rua asked.

Before Azalea could say anything, Aoi's prison of ice immediately shattered as a pair of laser beams shot from her eyes and her Dust Staff began to burn with intense flames. As Aoi looked up toward Slate, she has a menacing grin as her eyes glowed a dark red and fired another pair of beams at him. "Well... Aoi can do that," Azalea meekly said. "On the bright side, Jet hasn't actually unlocked his Semblance," she mentioned as the aforementioned boy managed to break free of the ice.

Getting nailed with lasers from Aoi's eyes, Slate felt intense pain before Jet kicked him in the face and knocked him back. "Just my luck," Slate muttered to himself before getting back up on his feet. All three of his opponents had sadistic smiles on their faces as they prepared to continue their fight with Slate. Rolling back to his feet and picking up his revolvers, Slate ran off and reloaded his weapons as he continued to dodge attacks. With Envy teleporting around to slash and kick at Slate, Aoi blasting lasers and fireballs, and Jet using his swords, everyone was amazed that Slate was able to avoid everything that came at him.

"I don't think Cereza could do this kind of stuff against them," Layla said as she kept watching Slate dodge attacks. "Maybe your dad's lessons are paying off," she said to Azalea. Azalea could only watch in awe as Slate avoided lasers, swords, and flames while reloading his guns. When Slate saw Aoi get behind him with her eyes glowing red, he quickly ducked so that the lasers nailed Envy and Jet instead of himself. As that happened, Slate maneuvered behind Aoi and kicked her to the ground next to her teammates. While Jet, Envy, and Aoi got back on their feet, Slate began to fire his revolvers at them and the shots didn't hit any of them.

"You missed, Deadeye," Aoi taunted as she prepared to counterattack.

"I _don't_ miss," Slate said as he twirled his revolvers on his fingers and moved his arms similarly to how he would holster his guns. Fragment Hunter saw that the rounds Slate fired earlier were Wind Dust ammo and that they were circling above the three bullies. When they saw Slate move his arms down, the bullets flew down toward Team JADE and inflicted a lot of damage to them. When Slate began to reload his pistols again, he saw that Envy was the only one of the three not on the ground. "Ah, Grimm paste!"

Envy teleported behind Slate and turned her sword into its whip form to slash away at him from a distance. The blades cut away at Slate's Aura and Envy kept forcing Slate back before Jet used his hook swords to disarm the gunslinger and trip him. With his guns kicked to separate sides of the battlefield, Slate saw that he was in trouble when Aoi spun her staff around and created daggers of ice above Slate. "I think you just ran out of luck," Envy taunted as the frozen daggers were dropped.

Rolling out of the way, Slate avoided the ice and ran toward Envy. Using her sword's whip mode, Envy tried to catch Slate's leg to trip him again. However, Slate leapt forward to avoid the attack and grabbed at Envy before throwing his knee into her gut to knock the wind out of her. "I'm not out just yet," Slate declared as he continued toward one of his revolvers and finished loading the weapon when he grabbed it. Quickly turning around, the gunslinger of Team FCSA aimed his gun at Envy and blasted her with a few Fire Dust rounds. The flames forced her to flinch and Slate began to change his ammo again while Aoi and Jet made their way toward him. Using Ice Dust bullets on the floor beneath Team JADE, Slate froze the ground and made the two enemies lose their balance.

Firing more ice shots around the three as he circled around the battlefield, Slate managed to reach his second revolver and began to reload as Team JADE started to melt the ice. When Slate managed to load his guns with more Wind Dust ammo, he opened fire on his opponents to try and end the fight. As the projectiles flew toward Team JADE, Fragment Hunter cheered on Slate for being able to last as long as he was. Each Dust bullet bounced around the battlefield and was about to hit Team JADE when something unexpected happened. Instead of hitting Team JADE from behind, the projectiles avoided them and converged on Slate himself, leaving him to yell in shock. "WHAT!?"

Getting nailed with his own attack, Slate was knocked around and fell to the floor as Team JADE laughed at him. "Did you mean to hit yourself with that attack? Or are you not a good shot like you think," Jet said as he taunted Team FCSA's gunslinger. Slate could only growl at Jet before he picked up his revolvers again and fired at the swordsman. But to Fragment Hunter's surprise, the bullet actually moved around Jet's face and returned to shoot Slate's revolver out of his hand. Slate was so surprised by the sudden change of his bullet's direction that he couldn't use his Aura in time and his hand was bleeding as he grabbed it in pain. "Took you long enough, Duke," Jet said as Fragment Hunter saw the last member of Team JADE enter the amphitheater.

"I was cleaning my weapon while I changed out of my uniform," Duke stated as he entered Fragment Hunter's view. Duke wore a dark blue tunic with silver-colored rerebraces, a chainmail undershirt, blue pants with silver-colored greaves, and brown combat boots. He carried a semi-automatic pistol with a blade attached to the top that looked like it would transform into a sword similar to Sunset's. "Why did I need to hurt him," Duke asked Jet and the girls as he gestured to Slate.

"He's the one who picked a fight with us," Aoi explained. "He shot at us first, so we defended ourselves."

Duke eyed his teammates in suspicion before turning to the small crowd of students that he and Team JADE saw earlier in the day. He noticed the Cow Faunus' flinching reaction when he looked at her before turning to his teammates and shaking his head in disappointment. "You three should be ashamed of yourselves," Duke said before he started to leave.

"We could still use your Semblance against this guy," Envy said as she grabbed Duke's hand for a moment. Feeling the new power flowing through her, Envy then released Duke's hand before preparing to attack Slate. "Thanks for the help, Duke," she said as her teammate left the area with a disgusted look on his face.

"What does she mean by that," Sunset asked Fragment Hunter before using her Semblance to try and read Envy's mind.

 _"Now with Duke's Trajectory Manipulation Semblance, I'll be able to redirect any projectile to defend us and get this cowboy from any angle,"_ Envy thought to herself, not knowing that Sunset relayed the information to the others. Unfolding her sword into a whip again, Envy began to slash away at Slate before grabbing him with her weapon. Slate tried to use his other revolver to shoot at her, but the bullet was redirected at the hand holding it and was knocked out of his grip. Slate was prepared for his other hand to be shot at, so it wasn't bleeding like the first one did, but he was now defenseless as Jet and Aoi approached him with their weapons while they had the same sadistic smirk as Envy.

Azalea looked on in horror as Slate was getting pummeled by her childhood bullies because he fought to defend her against them. Everyone else was looking at the sight in anger or disgust while they prevented Rua from going after Team JADE. "Had enough," Aoi asked as she grabbed Slate by the chin and looked him in the eye. Slate only glared back angrily in return as his hat fell off his head and his Aura shimmered in a viridian color to show that it was finally depleted. "I guess not, guys," Aoi said before she stepped away to let Jet and Envy continue beating Slate.

The assault continued as Fragment Hunter watched Slate get punched and kicked by Envy while Jet used his swords to smack the gunslinger around. Before any other attacks could be dealt, Sunset saw somebody enter the amphitheater and felt the anger radiating off of them. "What are you three doing to my student," everyone heard a familiar deep voice ask menacingly. Jet, Aoi, and Envy all turned to see that Terracotta Gaia was glaring at them and they all had similar fearful expressions on their faces. "I'm waiting for an answer, Pitch. Same with you, Lobelia and Sinn."

Team JADE couldn't even get a word in as they kept stammering under Terra's glare and they eventually ran for the nearest exit. Terra snorted as he saw the three run away like cowards before turning his attention to Slate as he tried to pick himself up. Fragment Hunter all went to Slate's side to help him and check on his condition. Aside from his bleeding hand, Slate's left arm had a cut on the bicep that would heal normally. He also had bruises all over his face and his left cheek was cut over the same place as his scar, making it bigger as everyone could see it was a little deep. "Come on, Slate. We need to get you some medical attention," Celadon said as Terracotta picked Slate up and carried him on his shoulder.

* * *

After having his wounds tended to, Slate alone in his dorm room inspecting his revolvers for damage and checking his ammunition. Soon, he heard a knock and saw that Terracotta let himself into Team FCSA's room. "I heard that Sunset could explore other people's memories now and that's how you learned about Azalea's connection to those three," he said to the injured gunslinger after closing the door.

"Yeah," Slate replied as he began to put his gun back together.

"And it sure was lucky that I showed up when they began to pummel you," Terracotta mentioned in knowing tone.

"Yeah. Lucky," Slate muttered as he avoided looking at Azalea's father and focused on his weapons.

Terra could see that Slate was still nervous about looking directly at him. "So, you decided to pick a fight with Team JADE in hopes of avenging Azalea's bullied past," the Bull Faunus stated. "Any reason why you did that instead of telling someone?" Slate looked at Terracotta in confusion and tried to explain, but he could think of why he decided to battle Team JADE specifically. "Can't answer, huh?"

"N-no, sir," Slate replied nervously as he gripped his injured arm, unintentionally causing more blood to soak the bandages.

Terracotta closed his eyes and decided to break the ice between him and Slate a little more. "When I was a newly-licensed Huntsman, I was returning from a mission in Anima and stopped by a village I training in while at Beacon. That village was Mirabelle and it was there that I encountered a gang of thugs trying to attack a woman. I ended up battling them and sending all four of the would-be rapists to the hospital," Terra told Slate. "When I saw that the girl's clothing had been torn and she was only in her shorts, I gave her my jacket and helped her to her feet. As I was doing that, I saw that it was a girl I met a few years ago on that same training mission. Her name was Ivy Dahlia Holstein, my future wife, and Azalea's mother."

Slate was amazed at the story of how Terracotta fought a group of punks that fully deserved what was coming to them and how he saved Azalea's mother. "Wow... Does Azalea know this story," Slate asked.

"She does. But the main point is that we're not so different, Slate," Terra stated. "We both fight to protect people who are treated unfairly. But, you need some extra training for hand-to-hand combat because of what Team JADE can do. I'll be glad to teach you new techniques to help fight alongside Azalea."

Slate thought over what Terra said until another knock was heard from the door and Azalea was seen opening the door. "H-hey, Slate. I just wanted to check up on you. Maybe fix up your bandages," she said nervously before seeing her father in the room. "Dad? What are you doing here?"

"I was just talking to Slate about how he can improve his training," Terracotta explained. "If you want, I can teach you how to at least throw a decent punch," he said to Slate as he clenched a fist. "I'll be heading out now. See you later, sweetie," Terra said to his daughter before leaving the room.

Azalea saw the soaked bandages on Slate went to replace them with new ones. As she did, Slate ended up paying attention to her now that she was right next to him. While he did see her figure when he accidentally walked in on her changing in the factory safehouse used by Smoke Shadow's gang, Slate never did pay attention to Azalea's other features until he saw them up close. What captivated Slate the most were Azalea's eyes and the freckles that dusted her cheeks. As Azalea was focused on fixing the bandages on his arm, Slate kept looking at Azalea and couldn't stop thinking about her. Soon, Azalea turned her head up to check on the bandage that rested on Slate's cheek and ended up making eye contact with Slate. The two kept looking at each other and Azalea could only mutter to herself as she fiddled around with the bandages on Slate's arm.

Slate thought to what Terracotta said about protecting people who were treated unfairly and thought of how Azalea was treated as she grew up. He knew that he couldn't do anything about her past, but thought that she deserved some happiness to help through the fact that Team JADE was at Beacon for the tournament. He wasn't going to let Azalea sit around between classes all the time and decided to do something about it. "Azalea, do you want to go out with me?"

* * *

 **And with Slate done fighting Team JADE, we have this. If any of you liked the idea of Slate and Azalea getting together, then you'll at least get to probably see them on a date together. You'll need to stick around for Azalea's reaction and how everyone else reacts, too. For the battle scene, I kept listening to "Paper Moon" from Soul Eater when I wrote it, so try listening to that while reading the fight again.**

 **Come back next time for more of "Sideline: Another Story". In other news, THAT NEW RWBY EPISODE! AWESOMENESS!**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out.**


	14. First Date

**Hey, readers. WaterDragonMaverick with the next "Sideline: Another Story" update. We last left off with Slate Quartz fighting Team JADE and getting pretty banged up during that. After getting bandaged up, Terracotta had a small talk with him and Azalea showed up a bit after. When Slate and Azalea were left alone, he asked her on a date and we'll see what Azalea's reaction to it is.**

 **Let's go!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my Original Characters.**

* * *

"Azalea, will you go out with me," Slate asked as Azalea was fiddling with the bandages on his arm. Azalea was surprised by what Slate asked her and she accidentally tightened the bandages too much. "Ow ow ow," Slate cried out in pain before Azalea loosened them up for him.

"Ah! I'm so sorry! I-it's j-j-just that... W-well... I've n-never really... It's just... Sorry," Azalea apologized and stuttered as her face turned a bright red. "W-w-why would you want to go on a d-date with m-m-me?"

Slate rubbed his arm to try and get rid of the pain from Azalea's mishap with the bandages before answering. "I just think you could use a nice night away from Beacon because of those jerks showing up," he said. "So, why not let me treat you to dinner? Take you a movie? Or something like that?"

Azalea was shocked by the fact that Slate was asking her on a date and couldn't say anything. She had never been on a real date before because of her shyness and nobody really asked her. A small part of Azalea thought that it might have had to do with her father, but she dismissed that idea. "W-well... I don't know what t-to say," Azalea said before the two of them heard the door slam open.

"SHE'D LOVE TO," Celadon exclaimed as she grabbed Azalea by the arm and dragged her out of Team FCSA's dorm. "How does Friday after classes sound? Perfect? I knew you'd say that, Slate! Ta-ta," Celadon quickly said as she and several of the girls in Fragment Hunter pushed Azalea to Team SAFR's dorm room.

In their rush, the only ones left were Slate, Silver, Rebecca, and Rua. All four had the same confused look on their faces before they asked the exact same question. "What just happened?"

* * *

"What just happened," Azalea asked as she was now standing in Team SAFR's room surrounded by Sunset, Layla, Cereza, Celadon, Vinyl, Lapis, and Vixen.

"You're going out with Slate on Friday, that's what," Layla said as she hugged Azalea.

"I didn't even answer him," Azalea countered as she looked at the others.

"That's why I answered for you, darling," Celadon reminded. "Now, we're going to have to go back into town because I saw a sale at the boutique I mentioned before. You'll definitely need a dress. Maybe we can put some makeup on you? We'll figure it out with the dress," Celadon said as she started to plan out a few things.

"How did you even know about this," Azalea asked before she remembered who was in the room with her. "Never mind. I figured it out," she said dryly as she looked at a smirking Sunset. "Come on, girls. Do you really have to do this?"

"Absolutely! We _must_ make sure you're prepared for your date with destiny," Celadon dramatically declared.

"I'd rather just stay here and write to my mom," Azalea muttered to herself.

"You can do that _after_ your date this weekend," Cereza said as she put a hand on Azalea's shoulder.

"It's just that I've never been asked out on a date before," Azalea told the girls. "What would I even do?"

"Hold on, you've never been out on a date before," Lapis asked.

Azalea only shook her head to answer as the girls looked at each other. "Well, she's a shy girl with pretty looks and an _enormous_ dad who looks like he can kill a man with his bare hands. If I wanted to ask her out, I'd be intimidated too," Sunset mentioned.

"Gee, I'd hate to be Slate when Lea's dad hears about this," Vixen said with a chuckle.

"Are we sure that Terra would do that," Layla asked in concern.

"Girls, I'm sure that my dad won't do anything to hurt Slate like you think," Azalea reassured.

* * *

Terracotta threw a punch at Slate and the latter had to dodge out of the way before another fist came right at him. Raising his arms to block the strike, Slate was sent flying backward from the sheer power of Terra's punch. After picking himself back up, Slate saw Terracotta in a kickboxing stance before he spoke to him. "Get in this stance and stay light on your feet. With your agility, you'll be able to dodge attacks and tire enemies out before overwhelming them with constant attacks," Terracotta advised.

"You don't really look like the kind of Huntsman who would be quick on his feet," Slate said as he got in the stance Terra showed.

"With my years of experience and the people I've met, you find out new ways to fight and improve yourself," Terracotta explained. "Which brings me to another point, Slate. Just dodging won't be enough, so you'll need to learn to take a punch and build up your endurance. I already know that you can take a beating because of Team JADE, but you can keep moving forward and practice."

"Yes, sir," Slate said as he began to spar with Terracotta. With quick movements as he punched and kicked the Bull Faunus, Slate's hand-to-hand skills were improving pretty well over the last few days. But just like with all the other lessons Terracotta gave, Slate never finished them without scratches or bruises.

"So, Slate. I've noticed that Azalea and the girls have been heading into town quite a bit," Terra mentioned as he jabbed at Slate to test him. "Even overheard them saying that they were excited to help her for this weekend. Anything special going on?" Slate's eyes widened as he failed to speak properly and eventually got punched in the stomach by Terracotta. As Slate fell to the ground, Terra stopped the sparring session to let him get back up and explain. "Is there something going on," the Huntsman asked.

"W-w-well, sir. It's j-just that I m-may have asked Azalea t-to go on a d-d-d-d-date," Slate managed to say with nervous stammering after catching his breath. "Pleasedon'tkillme," he said under his breath as he flinched away from Terracotta.

Terra just stared at Slate with a stoic expression and nodded after a few silent seconds. He then approached Slate as the latter had his eyes closed in nervous fear and placed a hand on his shoulder. Slate slowly opened his eyes to see Terra looking down at him before hearing him speak. "Look out for her."

"Wait, what," Slate asked in confusion as Terracotta went to collect his coat and sword. "You mean you aren't going to threaten me into behaving myself?"

"You act like a gentleman in Azalea's letters and actually meeting you has proven that," Terracotta said. "You're honestly the perfect boy for Azalea to go on her first date with."

"You know, I always thought that Azalea had admirers back in her hometown," Slate admitted as he rubbed the back of his head.

"She does, but there are several reasons for why she hasn't been asked out before," Terra stated.

"Are you one of them," Slate dryly asked as the two men left the amphitheater. Terracotta only smirked in response and that was all the answer Slate needed. "What are the others?"

"Well, you've known her for a while," Terra explained. "Besides her timid personality, she also has her mother's beauty. Because of that, she hasn't really been asked out because most boys are scared of that she would be out of their league."

"And the others are just perverts who were noticing her 'growth' as she hit puberty," Slate guessed.

"You'd be right," Terracotta answered. "At least, I know you aren't one of those boys and you'll treat my daughter right this weekend."

"Celadon said that she and the others would make sure Azalea's ready by Friday night," Slate explained.

"Alright then," Terra said as he and Slate reached the dorms. "I'll leave you to get some ideas for what to do on Friday. I also have something you should know," he said as he approached Slate. "Make sure to get her some flowers. Azalea always did like visiting the florist in Mirabelle with her friend, Bianca."

"C-can do, sir," Slate said as he saluted Terracotta nervously. Terra just laughed quietly to himself as he left Slate alone. The gunslinger sighed in relief that he wasn't getting on Terracotta's bad side at all and went to his dorm room. As he did, he saw Vinyl just outside of Team SAFR's room and waved a hand at Slate. "Are they in there with Azalea," Slate asked. Vinyl only shook her head to reply. "They in town," Slate guessed next, to which Vinyl gave a thumbs up to answer him. "Alright. Just got to wait a little longer then," Slate said to himself as he entered Team FCSA's dorm and was left on his own.

* * *

In Vale, Azalea was at a boutique with Sunset, Celadon, Cereza, Layla, and Lapis helping pick out some new clothes. "I thought we were just getting a dress for me," Azalea asked as she stepped out of the dressing room wearing a sleeveless white crop top with a few diamond-shaped cutouts near the top. "Why have me try these other clothes on?"

"Because you look so good in them, Azalea," Celadon said as she handed another top to the Cow Faunus and the others took photos. "Here, this one's green like your eyes. Try it on!" Taking the article of clothing from her friend, Azalea headed back into the dressing room to just make Celadon happy. After she put in on and showed her friends, everyone was amazed at how Azalea looked. "You're really working those tops, Azalea," Celadon said.

"You _should_ keep them. Just for when you decide to change your wardrobe some more," Layla suggested as she and Cereza took some new pictures. Azalea looked at her reflection as she wore the green crop top and started to admire her appearance just a little bit. "You don't have to wear them immediately. Save them for when you actually manage to break out of your shell a little more," Layla said as she stood next to her friend.

Out of nowhere, Lapis and Sunset came running into the dressing rooms with something in Lapis' arms. "We found it! It was marked down and we think that it'll be perfect," Sunset declared as Lapis handed the object to Azalea. Taking it from Lapis, Azalea went and changed into the dress given to her and showed everyone when she managed to get it on. The girls were all in awe at how Azalea looked in the dress as Azalea looked at her reflection in the nearby mirror to see for herself. "We found the right one," Sunset said with a confident smirk as she crossed her arms.

"Now we just need to find the right shoes to go with it and some makeup," Cereza stated. "And luckily, I know just the shade for the occasion," she said as she fixed her glasses with her own confident smile.

Azalea sighed before speaking up to her friends. "Alright, go ahead and do it. Just... nothing _too_ fancy for makeup, please. I prefer my own natural look."

"Trust me, love. You'll love how I fix your makeup on Friday before your date," Cereza said.

* * *

Friday afternoon came and as soon as classes ended, Rua teleported the girls to Team SAFR's dorm room at Celadon's request while Silver and Slate went into town for the latter to get some flowers for Azalea. "So, her dad _didn't_ threaten you with that giant sword of his," Silver asked in disbelief as Slate exited the flower shop.

"He just said that I should treat her like the gentleman she described me as in her letters. So, I probably just need to be myself," Slate said as he carried a bouquet which consisted of azaleas, calla lilies, fuchsia flowers, and gladiolus. "You think these are good to give Azalea," the gunslinger asked.

"I think that they seem a bit obvious," Silver dryly stated with a smile. Slate just gave him a blank stare before the Wolf Faunus spoke up again. "Look, she'll like them. Trust me, dude."

"If you say so," Slate said as they continued their way back to Beacon. After they reached their destination, the boys saw Vinyl, Rua, and Rebecca standing guard in front of the dorm rooms. "Are they still at it," Slate asked and the three girls only nodded in reply.

"They'll be done in a few minutes. You just wait," Rebecca said to Slate.

Listening to her, Slate and Silver decided to kill some time in Team SLVR's dorm and let the girls finish their work. When they entered, they saw Terracotta was carving at some wood and whittling it into a bull's skull similar to his emblem. "Hey, boys. The girls aren't done yet, so you better find something to do," he said as he started to inspect his carving.

"That's some nice work, Terra," Slate said as he noticed the carving. "I actually do some woodworking myself, but I haven't had the time lately."

"That's interesting," Silver said as he pulled out his Scroll to play video games.

After a discussion between the males changed from hobbies such as woodworking and model trains to fighting techniques, they soon heard a knock on the door and saw Vinyl signal to them. The boys left the room and Slate picked the bouquet of flowers back up before they were stopped in the hall by Celadon. "Gentlemen, it's my honor and pleasure to present the special lady of the evening," she declared as she gestured dramatically. "Please welcome, Azalea Calla Holstein," she said as she opened the door to Team FCSA's dorm and revealed the aforementioned girl.

The boys and Vinyl had their jaws all dropped to the floor as they saw Azalea in her attire for the evening, but Slate was the one who was the most surprised at what she wore. Azalea wore a black dress, her regular choker, removed her bandana, and had put on fuchsia lipstick and eyeshadow for the occasion. The dress was short and tight, but still left enough to the imagination to keep Slate interested. The red sash around her waist and the red heels she wore accentuated her beauty in a way that her normal clothes usually didn't. Slate just stood around until he managed to voice out a single word, "Wow."

Vinyl lifted up her shades to get a better look at Azalea and gave an appreciative whistle when she saw her friend look stunning in a dress. "Azalea, you look just like your mother," Terracotta said with a proud smile on his face and tears beginning to form in his eyes as Azalea blushed at the comparison. Terra also took the chance to take a picture of his daughter on his Scroll.

"That's exactly what she said when we finished putting the makeup on her," Cereza mentioned.

Slate managed to snap out of his trance and gave Azalea the bouquet. "H-h-here... Your dad said that you liked flowers," he said as she took the bouquet and smelled the flowers.

"They're lovely," Azalea said as she placed them in Team FCSA's dorm room. Layla began to fill a vase that decorated the room with water with her Dust jewelry and placed the bouquet in it as Azalea stepped toward Slate. "S-so, um... s-should we get going?"

"O-oh, yeah! We should," Slate said as he and Azalea started heading toward the courtyard, leaving the others behind as they looked on at the two of them.

"We're totally spying on them, aren't we," Vinyl asked bluntly.

"Oh, hell yes," the rest of Fragment Hunter said at the same exact time.

* * *

As the sun began to set over the city of Vale, Azalea and Slate were walking through the Commercial District as they looked for something to do together. "S-so, what are we doing tonight," Azalea asked hesitantly.

"I think that... getting dinner would probably the best option. That way we can just talk," Slate said as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Y-yeah... That sounds nice," Azalea said with a blush. The two teenagers started to search for a nice restaurant to stop at, but were unaware that they were secretly being followed by their friends. Soon, they found a place that served cuisine from Mistral. "This place looks good," Azalea said as she saw the restaurant.

"Okay, then," Slate agreed as he took Azalea by the arm and walked her inside with her blushing more.

As they entered the establishment, they saw somebody leaving and were greeted by a hostess in a red dress similar to Celadon's. "Welcome! A table just opened up, so please follow me," she said as she grabbed some menus for Slate and Azalea before guiding them to a table nearby a fish tank. "Someone will be with you soon to take your drink orders," the hostess said before heading back.

"Wow. How lucky are we to get a seat immediately when we walk inside," Azalea said as she sat down and looked at her menu.

"You'd be surprised," Slate replied as he looked for something to choose for himself.

As Slate and Azalea were just looking over the menus in silence, the rest of Fragment Hunter were trying to think of a way to spy on them. "Well, now what? How are we supposed to check on them now," Rua asked.

"Vixen and Celadon could easily pose as waitresses with their regular clothes, but what about the rest of us," Silver mentioned.

"Maybe they can have you work in the kitchen," Lapis joked. "You could use your chainsaw to cut vegetables." Silver only laughed sarcastically at his teammate in response.

"Just go get a table away from them that you can still see them from," Cereza suggested. "That's what I'll do with Layla."

"Come on, let's try and see how they're doing," Sunset said as she opened the doors for the ten teenagers to enter. After they managed to find some seats, Vixen used her Semblance to disguise everyone and Fragment Hunter began to listen in on Slate and Azalea as they talked.

"Soooo... What's it like at your hometown," Slate asked to try and start a conversation with the girl in front of him.

"I-it's a nice place," Azalea answered. "Nice neighbors, good local food, just the kind of town that makes you feel like you're at home. Well, there's also the occasional Grimm attack, but everyone's prepared for them."

"Yeah... I bet," Slate said quietly as he scratched his scarred cheek. "And your family? Aside from your terrifying father."

"Well, my mom's normally busy with running the farm and taking care of the important matters, but she always has time to help the farmhands with the field work. Same with Dad when he isn't on a mission," Azalea told Slate. "Aunt Malus and her husband help out on the farm, too. So, there's no shortage of people to help out at Plum Blossom Farms. Oh, and there's Uncle Ventus. He's a Huntsman like Dad, but he went to Shade Academy instead of Beacon. He's really fun to be with!"

"So, is he a Faunus too," Slate asked.

"He's a Peregrine Falcon Faunus with talons as his trait," Azalea explained. "He's always on an adventure as a Huntsman, but he manages to find the time to come by the farm. I bet everyone would like him."

"Hey, if he went to Shade Academy and graduated, I'm sure he's a great guy who can get through anything," Slate said as the waitress came by with their drinks.

"Thank you," Azalea said to the waitress as she got a glass of 'People Like Grapes' soda. After they asked for their orders, Azalea turned back to Slate and decided to ask him something. "So, what about you? You said you had a sister? I'm an only child, so I don't know what it's like to live with a sibling. What's she like?"

Slate rubbed the back of his head in thought and tried to think of what to say. "How do I put this? You remember that time when Nora had a sugar rush and kept bouncing around the school like a pinball," Slate asked. After Azalea nodded, Slate continued. "That's Pinkamena on an average day. Basically, she's pretty similar to Nora in a lot of ways. Really energetic, imaginative, wants to be a Huntress herself, and can exhaust anyone who isn't prepared for her."

"Wow. How old is she," Azalea asked.

"Pinkie just turned 14. She's really grown from the little pink gumball that I knew her as a kid," Slate replied as he showed Azalea a picture of his sister on his Scroll.

"Awww, she's adorable," Azalea said as she looked at the photo. Slate's Scroll showed a picture of a young girl with the same viridian eyes as Slate, but she had pink hair similar to bubblegum or cotton candy in color. Pinkie was smiling brightly as she wore Slate's hat with her brother sitting next to her.

"Yeah," Slate agreed as he put his Scroll away. "Anything else you want to ask? Our food probably won't be here for a little bit."

Azalea took a sip of her soda as she thought of something. Soon, she remembered something important that happened whenever Slate was around. "Why is it that whenever we're getting involved with something, things just seem to go our way," Azalea asked. "First, there was when you confronted Cardin before the Initiation Test and Doctor Oobleck showed up to stop a fight. Then, there was when you and I teamed up, we were the first ones to find the temple in the Emerald Forest. And let's not forget when we were trying to figure out Smoke Shadow's calling card, Professor Ozpin and Doctor Oobleck helped us figure it out. Finally, as soon as you helped Vixen and Lapis, you find the things Sombra stole and we get them back to the police."

 _"Honestly, I'm wondering about that myself,"_ Sunset telepathically said to the other spying members of Fragment Hunter.

Slate took a deep breath and exhaled slowly before he started to explain. "It's my Semblance, actually. I can alter probability, which makes luck work for me or anyone I choose. However, it does have its downsides," he admitted.

"Like what," Azalea asked.

"Well, I can only use it three times before the next one backfires on me. Remember when we encountered all those Grimm just after meeting up with Cereza and Layla? That was essentially my Semblance balancing itself out," Slate told Azalea. "I honestly think that it's a blessing and a curse of an ability. And before you ask, my trick shots in combat are all skill. I don't like to use my Semblance in battle unless I need to. Like some of the things that happened against Team JADE."

Azalea sighed as she remembered what happened before when Fragment Hunter met her old bullies and she ran away. "I still can't believe that you decided to fight all three of them on your own," Azalea said before she looked away from Slate. "Nobody at Sanctuary Academy did that for me."

"Well, it just means that they're jerks that don't deserve to be Huntsmen," Slate said. "I originally wanted to be one just so that I could test my skills, but my folks told me about something that happened when I was a baby. When my family was moving through the desert toward Vacuo, I was nearly killed in a Grimm attack. A Huntsman managed to save my family and the only damage I got was this scar across my cheek," he told Azalea as he rubbed a thumb across his scar. "They told me that story after I decided to sign up for Beacon and I took it to heart. I love a good challenge, but I'm still going to help others in need. Especially if they're a pretty girl like you," Slate stated, but muttered the last sentence with a small blush on his face.

Azalea still managed to hear him and she blushed as well. Soon, the waitress stopped by with their food. "Here you go. One order of vegetable fried rice for the lovely lady, an order of dumplings for the table, and one serving of stir-fried noodles for the gentleman. I'll be back with some refills for your drinks," the waitress said as she gave the two rookie Huntsmen their meal.

As the two enjoyed their meal, Slate was wondering something. "Hey, Azalea? Something's been bothering me. Is it okay for you to eat beef? I'm only curious," he asked.

"I only have cow horns. I'm not actually a cow," Azalea said after swallowing another bite of her fried rice. "I _can_ eat steak and other meats, but I just prefer other food. Heck, my dad loves to have a good steak dinner every once in a while."

 _"Finally. I was asking myself that same question since we first met each other,"_ Rebecca telepathically told the others. _"My grandfather is a Rat Faunus, so I know he can eat quite a few things that he wants."_

"That's a load off my thoughts," Slate sighed as he grabbed another dumpling for himself.

"My turn to ask something," Azalea stated. "If you weren't going to be a Huntsman, what would you be? I'd go back to helping my family at the farm."

Slate scratched his chin in thought as he pondered over Azalea's question. "If I had to choose... I'd probably be a treasure hunter. There are all kinds of lost artifacts and relics from old Kingdoms. It would be fun to find them and discover what all of them were," Slate said. "Just imagine all the things that lie under the sands in western Sanus or in the Mistral regions. But then again, with my luck I'd probably cause old buildings to collapse under my feet when I reach them," Slate mentioned and got a laugh out of Azalea. The other members of Fragment Hunter were happy to see Slate and Azalea enjoying themselves as the rest of their date continued.

* * *

After they left the restaurant, Slate took Azalea back to Beacon Academy and Fragment Hunter followed them back in secret. "I had fun tonight," Azalea said.

"Glad you liked it," Slate replied as he scratched his cheek nervously.

"I honestly thought that this would have turned out awkward or something embarrassing would've happened," Azalea mentioned. "Or worse, Team JADE would've shown up to ruin everything for me and you," she said as she nervously rubbed her arm and looked away from Slate.

"Well, it's not like we live in a world of clichés. In fact, the only one I saw was the rest of Fragment Hunter spying on our date," Slate told his partner. Fragment Hunter all freaked out at Slate saying that he saw them and they all bolted from their hiding spots. Azalea laughed as she heard Rua and Sunset swearing as they bumped into a few walls in their rush. "I guess that the date's over now," Slate mused as he rubbed the back of his head.

Azalea looked at Slate and thought of all the times that he helped her. He was always willing to defend her from bullies, he was a very reliable partner in battle, and she had to admit to herself that she thought he was kind of cute. After all Slate did to make her feel happy after everything that happened recently, Azalea decided to do something she probably wouldn't have done before. "Not yet," Azalea told Slate as she took a hold of his head. Pulling his face closer to hers, Azalea placed her lips on Slate's scarred cheek and left a fuchsia lipstick mark on it when she pulled back. "Not until the goodnight kiss," Azalea stated. "I need to change. So, I'm going in first," Azalea said to Slate as he stood dazed from Azalea's kiss and he could only nod quietly. Azalea blushed as she entered the dorm room and closed the door behind her.

As soon as she did, Slate wobbled around and eventually fell to the floor with a goofy smile on his face. The other members of Fragment Hunter came back and saw their friend on the ground. "Well, looks like somebody's quite smitten with our little Azalea," Celadon said as she saw the look on Slate's face and the lipstick mark.

"Lucky little devil," Silver and Vinyl both said as they smirked at Slate.

As Fragment Hunter either helped Slate back up or went to check on Azalea, Terracotta was hidden from their view and smiled to himself as he looked at his Scroll. Just as Azalea kissed Slate on the cheek, Terra was able to get a photo of the two. He soon sent it and the picture of Azalea he took earlier to somebody along with a message. A few moments later, he got a reply that said 'She's growing up so fast. I'll be there as soon as I can.' Terra only smiled at this and headed off after putting his Scroll away.

* * *

 **Well, this took a while. But, I'm glad that I finally finished it. I wanted to do this chapter to show off the growing relationships between Azalea, Slate, and Terracotta. Not only that, but give some extra characterization for Slate. If you're wondering about more Team JADE appearances, they'll show up again later.**

 **Next time, we'll have more characters introduced and have Fragment Hunter get ready for a few things that take place in Volume 2. Such as the Beacon Dance, shadowing professional Huntsmen, and the Breach.**

 **RWBY Volume 5 was GREAT and I loved the entire thing. I'm probably going to get more writing done with RWBY Chibi Season 3 coming out soon as well.**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	15. Mightier Than The Sword

**Hey, everyone. WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". In the last chapter, we had a bit of a breather for Fragment Hunter when Slate and Azalea went out on a date after everything that happened with Team JADE. For this chapter, we'll have the appearance of not just another one of my Huntsman characters, but you'll also get to see an Original Grimm idea that I've been planning. So, get ready to see what our heroes will fight and who the experienced warrior is.**

 **On your guard!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my Original Characters and the Grimm introduced in this chapter**

* * *

The rest of the weekend went well for Fragment Hunter after Slate and Azalea's date. While Silver and the other girls tended to tease Slate for what happened when they returned to the dorm, Slate was only happy that Azalea had a nice time. When classes started again on Monday, the twelve teenagers had a few things still on their minds. "What happened to Team JADE? We haven't seen them since Terra scared them off," Lapis questioned.

"If I see them, I'm going to deck those jerks in the eyes before I personally introduce them to the ground," Rua snarled as she punched her palm.

"You don't have to worry about that for a while," Sunset said. "I heard that after Terracotta stopped the fight between them and Slate, they all got punished for what Terra told Professor Ozpin. 'Three members of Team JADE from Haven Academy were assaulting Slate Quartz and injured him beyond his Aura being broken.' I think that's what your dad told me, Freckles," Sunset explained before turning to Azalea. "I heard they had to help Professor Port all weekend with capturing a Grimm or two in the Forever Fall Forest."

"What kind of Grimm," Cereza asked as she adjusted her glasses.

"No clue, but we might see it in Port's class this morning," Sunset told the others.

"Well then, let's get ready for it just in case," Celadon said as she guided the others to the locker room to collect their equipment in case they had to participate in one of Professor Port's 'interactive' lectures.

* * *

When Fragment Hunter attended Port's class, they saw that Team JADE was there as well. However, they noticed that they were exhausted and still scratched up badly by whatever they had to help Professor Port catch. Eventually, Team RWBY, Team JNPR, and several other students from all four schools all waited for Professor Port to show up and start the lesson. "I wonder if we're going to be bored to death today," Rua said as she stretched her arms.

"I don't think so," Layla said as she pointed to Professor Port and a woman pushing a concealed box that kept moving around violently into the classroom. The box was likely a crate or cage that held the Grimm that Team JADE had caught and everyone had their eyes on it before they turned to see the woman assisting Port. "Who is that," Layla asked as Port and the woman managed to place the box in the corner of the classroom. Sunset seemed to recognize the woman, but wasn't entirely sure about it.

The female in question was about 5'11" as she stood slightly taller than Port, had flawless alabaster skin that gave off an impression of health and beauty, and her shoulder-length black hair with azure highlights fell over her eyes after she stood back up. Fixing her hair so that got out of her cyan eyes, the woman scanned the classroom to see who was present. She wore a black dress with a blue trim that ended above her knees and had a silver emblem of an alicorn's head that its wings positioned to resemble a crescent moon. She also wore vambraces and armored boots that were silver in color as well as a necklace that seemed to have Dust in the center. "Greetings, young Huntsmen and Huntresses," the woman announced with an apparent echo in her voice. "My name is Nocturne Celeste and I will be aiding your esteemed professor, Peter Port, in his lectures today."

While several students were a bit hesitant to call Port 'esteemed', Sunset's suspicions of the guest were correct as Rebecca turned to her. "Celeste? As in she teaches at that 'Garrison Academy' place you went to before," the ninja asked.

"Yeah. That's Nocturne, my mentor's younger sister," Sunset replied before Professor Port started the lecture.

"The pleasure is all mine, Miss Celeste," Port said as he thanked Nocturne for the introduction. "Now if I remember our last class correctly, I was in the middle of one of my heroic tales of my youth," Port stated as the rest of the class groaned. Most of the class passed by as Port's story droned on and everyone who didn't pay attention to the lecture was either fast asleep like Azalea and Rua, reading a book like Vixen and Blake, or doing something else entirely as Slate began to play a video game on his Scroll and Vinyl listened to her music.

"Honestly, I can't believe some of you at times," Celadon whispered to her friends as she filed her nails. "Falling asleep in class and not paying attention to the important parts of Professor Port's story."

"He's on a tangent about how he made a shelter with nothing but his bare hands and a couple of big rocks," Silver countered as he decided to pull out his own Scroll to play video games. "Not to mention you're filing your nails right now."

"As you said, he's on a tangent. But my point still stands," Celadon said. "We should pay attention more. Just look at Miss Celeste. She's focusing on the story," she stated as she gestured to Nocturne.

"Actually, I've known her for quite some time. She's not paying attention," Sunset retorted. "She likes to go into her own little world whenever she gets bored." To prove Sunset's point, Nocturne pulled out a knife and started to twirl it around while quietly humming a little tune. "See what I mean."

Soon, Port cleared his throat to grab everyone's attention. Rua managed to wake up and punched Azalea to get her to even move, Slate and Silver put their Scrolls away, and everyone else turned back to the teacher. "After locating the beast, I was able to trap my prey with its back to the cliff and finished it off with a clean shot to the head. When I returned to the village, I was celebrated as a savior before I needed to return to Vale for my next daring adventure," Port said as he finished his story. "Now then, I'd like to turn everyone's attention to the cage Miss Celeste and I brought with us," Port said as he walked toward the box and swiftly pulled off the tarp covering it. As soon as he did, most of the students recoiled in disgust and fear as they saw the Grimm inside.

The Grimm had a bone-like mask that looked like a skull with centipede-design marks, a single burning red and yellow eye in the middle of its face, and its black body resembled that of a bone-armored centipede. The insectoid Grimm in the cage was 8 feet long, had sharp pincers, blade-like legs, and kept hissing at everyone it saw while it rammed into the cage to try and free itself. "What in the name of _ANYTHING_ that's holy is that," Celadon loudly questioned as she tried to keep as much distance between herself and the Grimm.

"This, my students, is a Pendra," Port explained in a more serious tone than earlier. "More commonly called a 'Night Crawler' by Huntsmen and Huntresses, this Grimm is a _very_ deadly foe for those who aren't prepared. It can tunnel underground for sneak attacks, has a habit of constricting enemies much like a King Taijitu, and the most dangerous weapon at its disposal is the acidic poison it can create from its jaws."

"P-p-poison," Azalea asked as she shuddered in fear when she saw the Night Crawler's jaws dripping with a purple liquid.

"Yes, Miss Holstein. A Pendra has several venomous attacks that it uses to battle Huntsmen," Port elaborated. "In fact, its venom is so dangerous that I had to use a special cage so that it wouldn't melt when we had to bring the Grimm in for someone to fight it."

"One of us has to fight that thing," Envy Sinn shouted in disbelief. "We were creamed by that bug when we had to help over the weekend!"

"Which is why none of you will be fighting it," Port told Team JADE. "You have been punished enough by myself for what you did last week. So, you are to now report to Professor Goodwitch for the last of your assignments," he explained. At his order, Team JADE all left the room to find Professor Goodwitch while Port turned his attention back to the rest of his class. "Now then, do I have any volunteers for facing this Night Crawler?" Everyone seemed hesitant to do anything involving the centipede-like Grimm, which upset Port a little. "Very well. Looks like I'll choose somebody to fight this Grimm," he said as he started to look around the room. Looking at SLVR, SAFR, and FCSA, Port figured that at one member from any of the three teams would be prepared to fight the Night Crawler. "Miss Blaze. Step forward and face your opponent," he said as he pointed to Sunset.

The girl soon walked down from her seat and drew her sword, ready to face off against the Grimm. The Pendra stared down at the Huntress-in-training and hissed at her. Sunset just glared back at the Grimm in response and held her sword up. "Alright," Port said as he approached the side of the cage with his blunderbuss axe in hand. "Let the battle start," he declared as he swung his blade to break off the lock of the cage and release the Night Crawler. The centipede Grimm saw Sunset at the ready and charged at her while it sounded off a loud hiss. Sunset jumped over the Grimm to dodge and countered by trying to slash at its body, but its armor was too thick and the blade bounced off. The Pendra turned back around and sped toward Sunset as she landed on the ground. The Grimm leaped at the girl in hopes of stabbing her with its legs, but Sunset changed her weapon into its sniper rifle mode to fire a few shots at the Grimm's underbelly. While the bug had less armor there, the shots still didn't damage it like Sunset wanted them to do and only forced the Pendra to the ground.

"Come on, Sunset! You can do it," Silver and the rest of Fragment Hunter cheered for their friend and group's de facto leader. Changing her weapon back into its sword mode, Sunset rushed at the Night Crawler and attempted to slash away at its face. The Grimm only caught at the sword and the two opponents struggled to get the blade out from the other's grip. Soon, Sunset saw that the Pendra's mouth was emitting a purple mist and her eyes widened in surprise as she figured that the Grimm was going to use its poison. Kicking the Night Crawler away, Sunset was able to keep her sword while the Grimm landed on the floor and mist flowed from its jaws, touching the floor and burning away at it.

"That was a close one," Sunset said as she saw the damage done to the ground with what looked like a weaker poison attack while the Pendra stood back up. Aiming at the Grimm, Sunset fired her weapon's gun form at the monster in hopes of damaging it. The monster's armor was too strong for the ammo that Sunset was using, so she had to try something different. Looking at her jacket, Sunset got an idea and prepared the Fire Dust she had in her clothing. With the sleeves lighting up, Sunset launched a fireball at the Grimm and managed to hit it. The Pendra cried out in pain before it began to crawl across the floor and avoided the other fire attacks that Sunset began to use. As soon as the Night Crawler got close enough to Sunset, it circled behind her and grabbed at her jacket to stop the assault it was under. "Grimm paste," Sunset said as she felt her jacket being pulled by the Grimm. Acting fast, she swiftly removed her jacket without it being torn and ran to the other side of the room. The Pendra saw that Sunset was retreating and changed her weapon into its rifle mode. Opening fire on the centipede monster, Sunset managed to lure it toward her and make it release her jacket. However, the Night Crawler soon spat a purple glob of poison at Sunset's weapon and forced it out of her hands.

"This doesn't look good for you, Miss Blaze," Port warned as the girl held her hands in pain. Her Aura prevented major damage to her hands and her weapon, but the corrosive poison still burned her hands a little and Sunset's Aura began to heal the small injuries. The Night Crawler managed to take the chance to surround Sunset as she was unarmed, distracted, and defenseless. Circling the girl, the Night Crawler soon began to coil itself around Sunset's body and started to squeeze. Sunset cried out in pain as the Grimm began to slowly tighten its constricting grip on her. "Oh dear," Port said as he reached for his weapon while Nocturne's black hair soon started to move like an ethereal wind was blowing in the room and looked like stars were twinkling in it.

Before either teacher could do a thing, a fireball was launched at the Pendra and it hissed in pain as it released Sunset from its grip. Most of the class and even both teachers were confused as to where the attack came from, but they soon looked in the direction the flames came from and saw Azalea pointing her baton at the Grimm. "If you're going to hurt my friend, you're going to have to go through me," Azalea declared as she looked at the Pendra with an angry glare. Everyone who looked at Azalea were surprised to see that her normally vibrant green eyes were briefly a bright ruby red in color. The members of Fragment Hunter made a comparison of the color to her father's eyes and noted that they looked exactly the same. Jumping toward the 'battlefield', Azalea soon entered the fight against the Night Crawler as she changed Gladion's Dust setting to use Lightning Dust.

"Wait for us, Freckles," Rua shouted as she and Lapis joined the fight with their weapons. Rua grabbed Sunset's jacket before she teleported behind the Grimm and kicked it away from her friend. "Here you go, Firefly," said to Sunset as she returned the article of clothing. While Sunset put her jacket back on and retrieved her weapon, Azalea was quick to strike at the Pendra with Gladion repeatedly and shocking the beast with electricity. As the monster recoiled in pain from the constant electric shocks, Lapis was quick to imprison the Grimm in ice to stall for some time.

"Anyone got a plan for this thing," Lapis asked as she kept on her guard when she saw the Night Crawler using its acidic venom to burn away at the ice it was trapped in.

"It has a big eye on its face," Rua pointed out as she prepared her arm blades. "We could try attacking it like in video games with those giant one-eyed spiders."

Sunset only facepalmed at the suggestion before she spoke up about it. "Why didn't I think of that earlier?"

"Questions for later. It's almost out," Azalea said as she pointed Gladion at the Pendra. The Grimm soon freed itself from its icy prison before attacking the four girls. Running at the centipede monster, Rua slashed and punched at the creature's underbelly while Lapis used her Semblance to pin the Grimm in place. The sonic scream had everyone watching the fight cover their ears as the Grimm's writhed in pain and its armor began to crack. Soon, Azalea placed her hands together to act as a foothold while Sunset jumped toward her. _"Ever heard of a 'Fastball Special',"_ Azalea asked Sunset through the latter's telepathy.

 _"I believe I have,"_ Sunset told Azalea as the latter got into position. Running toward Azalea, Sunset jumped at the Cow Faunus and was thrown above the Night Crawler. _"Rua, help me out,"_ Sunset telepathically said to the brawler of Team SLVR. Teleporting above Sunset with her shield in front of her, Rua pushed Sunset forward as she kicked off the shield for some extra speed. The Pendra looked up to see Sunset flying at it with her sword thrusting forward and it was soon stabbed in the eye. The blade went through the Grimm's head entirely and the soulless monster began to slowly evaporate before Sunset pulled out her sword from the creature's corpse.

"Bravo, students! Now that's _exactly_ what I expect from Huntresses in training," Port congratulated as he clapped for the four girls. "Night Crawlers are very dangerous when battling alone without the proper experience. So are several other species of Grimm. You must always be vigilant when facing the unknown and it's better to have some backup that you can trust with your life," Port said just before the bell rang. "That concludes today's lesson. I want you all to do the assigned readings about Pendra and other insectoid Grimm for your homework tonight. I'll see you next time, class."

As everyone started to leave, most of them expressed their opinions about the fight with the Pendra that Sunset and the others had. Most of them were saying that the girls were great in the battle while the others made comments about the Grimm and what they could do against something like it. Eventually, only Fragment Hunter were left in the classroom as Nocturne Celeste approached them. "I see that you've actually made some good friends, Sunset," Nocturne said with a smile. "My sister will be pleased with everything I'll tell her later."

"Where is she anyway," Sunset asked.

"Today, she was helping Doctor Oobleck with his History Class. However, I believe that she'll be around town tomorrow afternoon. You know how much she loves her bakery visits," Nocturne explained. "Try and see her then."

"Alright, Nocturne. It was nice seeing you," Sunset told the woman before the twelve teenagers left the classroom.

* * *

Fragment Hunter were soon in the library doing their assignment from Professor Port by looking up more about insect-based Grimm. "I'm not fond of insects myself, but that Night Crawler was just _revolting_ ," Celadon said with a shudder. "Still, I'm surprised that you were the first to intervene in the match, Azalea."

"Well, I couldn't let my friend get eaten or killed some other way during a lesson in class," Azalea said as she turned toward a page about the Pendra Grimm they fought. "Oh dang. It says here that when certain Night Crawlers get old and strong enough, they're called a 'Lord Pendra'. They have more pincers on their tail areas, thicker armor, and can even fire poisonous spikes like a cannon," she said as she showed a picture of a Pendra that looked about the same size as the King Taijitu that Team SAFR and Team FCSA fought together.

"Damn," Vinyl simply said as she moved her sunglasses to get a better look at the monster depicted in the book.

"We wouldn't want to fight that thing before getting enough experience," Rebecca commented.

"Yeah. No question about that," Sunset stated. "We already saw I had a hard time against one of them. I think it would take all 12 of us to kill a _Lord_ Pendra."

"So, what's Nocturne like," Vixen asked as she wrote down notes for her homework before turning her attention to a different book.

"She's kind of like the ultimate big sister you probably never had," Sunset said after thinking about it for a moment. "Always helping out the kids at Garrison Academy before they left for Beacon or any other of the Huntsmen Academies."

"Cool," Slate said. "I noticed her hair was acting strange when that Night Crawler was constricting you. What was that? Her Semblance?"

"I'd like to think so," Sunset replied. "I never really saw it in action before though."

"I bet that Grimm would've been ripped to pieces by her if Azalea didn't act first," Layla surmised.

"Yeah. Same here," Sunset told the others. "Nocturne is actually just as strong as Aurora in combat skill despite being about 3 years younger. Mostly because while Aurora was teaching at Garrison Academy, Nocturne was on missions as a Huntress. Now that they both teach at Garrison, they're around the same level."

"Who would win in a fight," Silver asked.

"I'm not getting into _that_ debate," Sunset warned. After managing to avoid discussing hypothetical battles, Fragment Hunter soon decided to get some training in so that they were prepared for Grimm like what they read about. Using Vixen's illusions to create the images of Grimm, the rest of the group battled against the false monsters and started to test everyone's limits.

* * *

On a ship heading toward Vale, several humans and Faunus were excited about the Vytal Festival happening soon in the Kingdom. "I can't wait to see which school wins this year," one passenger said.

"Yeah, same here. I'm wondering if Beacon will win this time," another one replied.

"Who knows," the captain of the ship said as he decided to check up on his passengers. "I think it would be best to wait and see," he told the passengers before moving on. As he walked past some children playing, he smiled at them before he stopped next to a Faunus woman enjoying the sea breeze with a few dogs nearby. "It's a beautiful day, isn't it, Ma'am?"

"It certainly is, sir. A wonderful day to visit family in Vale," she replied as she adjusted her hair to show off her small white cow horns.

"Staying for the Vytal Festival," the captain politely asked.

"Maybe," the woman answered as she began to pet a collie next to her. "It all depends on if my daughter is going to be entering it this year. She just started classes at Beacon Academy. I've been getting letters from her and she's been doing well."

"I hope that you meet up with her when we get to Vale, Ma'am," the captain said as he left.

The collie barked twice when the captain left and the Faunus woman scratched her behind the ears. "Don't worry, Diana," the Faunus woman said to her dog. "We'll get to Vale soon and see everything for ourselves."

* * *

 **And with that chapter, we now have a look at one of my Original Grimm ideas. The vicious centipede Creature of Grimm, the Pendra (aka Night Crawler). Hope you guys all enjoyed that fight and the appearance of Nocturne Celeste. You'll see more of her later and next chapter will focus on Sunset some more while they talk with Aurora Celeste.**

 **If you're wondering about that last scene on the ship, it WAS the same ship seen in Volume 4 with the same captain. And as for the Faunus woman, you'll find out who she is later. Just know that she's important.**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	16. Sunrise, Sunset

**Hey, readers. WaterDragonMaverick here with the latest chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, we were introduced to a brand-new original Creature of Grimm called a "Pendra" that Huntsmen and Huntresses call "Night Crawlers", as well as one of Sunset Blaze's old teachers from Garrison Academy. I'll be sharing more OC Grimm ideas, but not in this chapter. Instead, we are going to meet up with Sunset's teacher who saved her from a Grimm attack and helped her change for the better. We'll also be learning a bit more about Sunset's Semblance and a few other things.**

 **Embrace the light!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things in this story I own are my own Original Characters**

* * *

After Professor Port's lesson on the centipede-like Grimm known as Pendra, the members of Fragment Hunter were exhausted from doing extra training to deal with Grimm bugs and returned to Team FCSA's dorm room. "If those Grimm fight anything like how Vixen made them move, I think that they'll be just as tough," Layla said as she jumped and landed on her bed. "At least we'll be prepared for them a little."

"I hear you," Silver agreed as he stretched his back. "I'm wondering if we'll be doing some training against the transfer students from Atlas, Mistral, or Vacuo for the next combat class?"

"Who knows," Azalea said before she yawned. "I just know that my dad is going to be going on a small mission tomorrow morning, so he's not going to teach Combat Class with Professor Goodwitch. Maybe they got a replacement?"

"Probably," Rebecca surmised as she adjusted her scarf. "We might have another Huntsman or Huntress who graduated from Beacon instructing us."

"Well, we can just wait and see," Sunset mentioned. "I should get some sleep because of today. Night everyone."

* * *

The next day, the three teams all prepared for Combat Class and reached the amphitheater where Professor Goodwitch was waiting with Nocturne and another woman. Upon seeing her, Sunset gasped and had a giant smile on her face when she saw who it was. The third woman stood at 6'3" with a slender and modest figure that had flawless and healthy alabaster skin. She adjusted her long flowing pink hair that reached her hips so that it would fall over one of her heliotrope eyes before she noticed Sunset Blaze and smiled back at her. "Hello there, Sunset," she greeted with a kind and motherly voice.

"Hi, Miss Celeste," Sunset greeted back as she and Fragment Hunter took their seats.

" _That's_ your teacher? Aurora," Celadon asked in disbelief. Sunset only nodded in response before Celadon and the others looked back at the woman. "She's absolutely lovely! Look at her outfit! She could be a princess or a queen at first glance," Celadon commented. Fragment Hunter looked at the pink-haired woman to see that she wore a white dress with gold details, gold bracelets with light blue gems in the centers, gold-colored high heels with purple gems decorating the center of the shoe, and she wore a gold necklace that was shaped into an alicorn's head with its wings spread open to resemble a shining sun. At her hip, she had an ornate rapier that had a hilt which resembled a horse's head and made the weapon look very much like a unicorn.

"Yeah, I guess there are some perks to having a family history that dates back to being the advisors of past kings," Sunset offhandedly mentioned.

All of Fragment Hunter were surprised to hear that and they shouted, "WHAT!?"

"Ow," Sunset muttered as she rubbed her ears. After making sure she wasn't deaf, Sunset explained what she meant. "I said that the Celeste Family's history goes back to way before the Kingdoms were changed after the Great War. The Celeste House was a family of nobles that have been the most trusted and honest advisors to the Kings of Vale. When the Warrior King of Vale said that he was stepping down and changing the government of his country, the Celeste Family immediately sided with him. They even helped build the Huntsman Academies alongside the King and other leaders from the peace talks on Vytal at the end of the Great War."

"Wow... That's awesome," Slate said. "So, those two sisters are descended from noble blood?"

"Actually, I believe that I'm just like any other person," Aurora voiced as she stood in front of the members of Fragment Hunter. "However, you should be focusing on the class right now. Everyone's here."

After Aurora walked back toward Nocturne, Goodwitch started to explain the lesson for Combat Class. "Good morning, students. Today, we will be working on cooperation between team members," she stated. "In order to do this, I've asked Aurora and Nocturne Celeste to demonstrate their own abilities in 'Team Attacks'. They'll also assist you in coming up with your own combination attacks if you haven't already."

"Now, let's have one pair of students face off against us to let us demonstrate," Nocturne said with her weapon at the ready. Holding a partisan spear that had Dust crystals embedded in it, she spun it around before getting into a combat stance. "Does anyone wish to volunteer, or will you only continue to be warriors in your dreams?"

Hearing Nocturne taunt them as she and her older sister drew their weapons, the students all looked at each other and everyone had differing expressions on their faces. While some were nervous or indifferent, a few members of Fragment Hunter, as well as their other friends, looked determined to prove themselves. "I'll fight," Silver declared as he stood up.

"Excellent," Aurora said. "Anyone else who wants to fight?"

"I'm game," Vixen said as she pulled two of her iron fans out and unfolded them as she walked down to the battlefield with Silver as he grabbed his chainsaw.

"With the opponents chosen, it's time to begin the match," Glynda announced as she stepped off to the side. At the signal, Silver and Vixen readied their weapons as they stared down Aurora and Nocturne. Taking the first chance they could get, Nocturne blasted the two members of Team SLVR with a bolt of lightning from her partisan to separate them before Aurora immediately rushed Vixen with her rapier, Daybreak. Caught off guard by Aurora's speed, Vixen was left open to a number of slashes and thrusts from the Huntress' blade that were blocked with her Aura before she was kicked away. Seeing that she was outmatched for the time, Vixen decided to use her illusions to distract Aurora with clones of herself while she tried to get to Silver.

At the same time, Nocturne and Silver fought as their partisan and chainsaw clashed against each other. When Silver managed to jump back, he unfolded his weapon into its whip form and started to strike at Nocturne a few times before she caught the chain with her partisan's spearhead. Taking the chance, she used her Aura to activate the Lightning Dust crystals in the weapon to send a current of electricity along the chain and shock Silver. Forced to release his weapon before he got hurt, Silver jumped at Nocturne and used his Semblance to transform. However instead of becoming an actual wolf, Silver changed into a bipedal werewolf-like creature that had silver fur and sharp claws. Seeing the transformation, everyone was surprised and Nocturne laughed in delight. "It seems our young warrior has a few tricks in his arsenal! What fun," she stated as she twirled her spear around and prepared to clash once again.

"I'll say," Silver said as he used his new claws to slash away at Nocturne before grabbing her spear and kicking in the stomach to get her to release the weapon. After managing to disarm her, Silver threw Nocturne's partisan aside and transformed back when he grabbed his chainsaw again. "Now that you don't have a longer reach, I think that I'll have an easier time against you."

"It does seem that way," Nocturne mused before she pulled out twin knives and her hair started to move on its own while shimmering like a starry night. "If I didn't have my own tricks as well." As Silver was confused by Nocturne's hair acting like it did, everyone else saw that Silver's shadow began to move on its own before wrapping around his legs and tail. Surprised to see what happened, Silver was left open to Nocturne's next series of attacks that ended with her kicking him into Vixen.

Groaning as they stood back up, the two Faunus of Team SLVR saw Nocturne and Aurora approaching with their blades at the ready. "Okay. They have an advantage over us with their skills and experience, so let's use our own advantage," Silver said to Vixen. Nodding at what he meant, Vixen used her Semblance to create a dome of dark clouds that blocked out the light from the area. As the Celeste Sisters and the audience looked around, the only people to see anything in the pitch-black room were all Faunus. Using the new lack of light, Silver and Vixen began to strike at the two Huntresses in the darkness and were starting to win before they heard something.

"You two work well together," Aurora told the two students. "But I must say that you underestimated us quite often through this battle." Suddenly, Aurora's body began to shine brightly and everyone had to shield their eyes if they looked directly at her. With her mind distracted, Vixen's illusion of darkness faded and the room got much brighter. Holding out her free hand, Aurora's brilliant glow faded and a ball of light condensed near her palm. As everyone focused on the object, the pink-haired Huntress pointed the ball of light at the members of Team SLVR. "And I must remind you that we work well together as well," Aurora said as she looked at her sister. As Nocturne's hair began acting up again, Silver and Vixen's shadows began to move and bind them completely. As the Faunus struggled to free themselves, they only looked on with wide eyes as the ball of light shot forward and blasted them back to knock them out of the match.

After everyone saw Vixen and Silver struggling to get back up, Nocturne's hair and the lighting in the room changed back to normal. Stepping forward, Glynda caught everyone's attention and spoke up. "As you can see, both teams did an excellent job in working in tandem. However, Aurora and Nocturne Celeste had the advantage with their Semblances complimenting each other," Glynda explained. "By combining both of their abilities together rather than relying on one fighter's only, they were able to secure victory much easier."

"One way to work on your own 'Team Attacks' is to figure out how each of you would be able to cooperate. Such as using a Semblance that works with Dust and an ally's weapon together to create attacks that have a much more devastating effect than using one alone," Aurora lectured. "If any of you would like to have some assistance in figuring these details out, my sister and I would be glad to help this afternoon," she said while looking at Sunset's direction. Catching onto what she meant, Sunset and Fragment Hunter decided to stick around and talk with the Celeste Sisters when they got the chance.

* * *

Later, Aurora and Sunset were walking through town on their way back to Beacon with a bag from the bakery. "It's so good to see you after so much time apart, Sunset," Aurora said to her student.

"I feel the same way," Sunset agreed as she adjusted the way she held onto the bag she carried. "So, how's everything been at Garrison Academy?"

"The same as usual, but nobody quite like you has attended classes yet," Aurora mentioned. "An old friend of mine has told me about his daughter's adventures with you and your little group. Care to explain to me how you and 'Fragment Hunter' came to be," she asked with a smile on her face.

Sunset began to explain what happened involving everything she, Azalea, and Fragment Hunter have been through since the initiation test. She kept getting excited when talking about her Semblance ever since first discovering it thanks to Azalea, dealing with Smoke Shadow and his gang of thieves, as well as Fragment Hunter's first encounter with Team JADE. "And recently, I can look through people's memories. Which is why I know that Azalea's scared to death of Rapier Wasps," Sunset stated as they reached the dorm rooms.

"Hmm... Your Semblance doesn't seem to only be limited to people's minds in my opinion," Aurora mused. "I believe that you can connect with people through their Aura and soul as well as their minds and emotions. If you continue to train your Semblance beyond communication, I'm sure that you can find more abilities at your disposal."

"Wow... You really think so," Sunset asked as she thought about the potential abilities of her Semblance.

"I know so. Just don't use it too much. I'm sure that with this kind of ability, it can become overwhelming and backfire on you if you're not careful," Aurora warned. As she opened the room where she and Nocturne were staying, she remembered something important. "Oh, I also have a surprise for you, Sunset," Aurora said as she took the bag from Sunset, placed it on a table, and walked toward a corner of the room. Sunset tried to look at what her teacher was getting, but her view was obscured. "Here we are," Aurora said to herself before hiding something in her hands. "I thought that you deserved to see something that you left back in my care at Garrison."

Opening up her hands slowly, Aurora revealed that she was holding a black-spotted yellow lizard that Sunset gasped as she immediately recognized when it looked up at her with teal eyes just like her own. "Hey there, Phoenix! I missed you, buddy," she said as she held out her hand for the reptile to crawl onto her jacket's sleeve. "Thanks, Aurora! I've got to show the gang. I'll see you later," Sunset said to her teacher as she left in a hurry to show her pet to her friends.

"Don't forget what I told you about your Semblance," Aurora called out before Sunset disappeared. "Also, try speaking to Nocturne about it as well."

"Why's that," Sunset asked as she paused for a moment to listen to her mentor.

"It would be easier to understand coming from her," Aurora said and let Sunset go on her way.

* * *

As Sunset was glad to see her pet and bring him to her dorm room, she saw Jet Pitch, Aoi Lobelia, and Envy Sinn manage to unlock the door to Team FCSA's room and throw something in there before laughing to themselves and bolting. Just before she could yell at the three bullies, she heard Azalea scream loudly and continuously shout 'Kill it'. Opening the door to see what was going on, Sunset saw Cereza, Layla, and Slate draw their firearms while Azalea hid behind all three of them. Sunset looked in the direction they were facing and saw that Team JADE had released an angry Rapier Wasp into Azalea's room to torment her. "Great," Sunset muttered before she saw her pet crawling off her jacket and began to climb the wall that the Rapier Wasp was flying near. Seeing the bug flying toward Team FSCA, the lizard shot its tongue out and caught the bug before it got near the teenagers. Seeing the reptile catch the Rapier Wasp and pull it in to eat the insect, Azalea stopped screaming and cautiously move to Layla's side as the lizard swallowed its prey. "Good gecko," Sunset said as she smiled and held out her hand for her pet to climb onto it.

"What was with the screaming," Rebecca asked as Team SLVR and the rest of Team SAFR came into the room in a rush. "And what's with the lizard?"

"That's a Whip Tongue Leopard Gecko," Lapis stated as she observed the creature in Sunset's hand. "It looks similar to the common breed of Leopard Gecko found in areas like Vacuo, but it has traits similar to other lizards such as pads that let it climb any smooth surface and a tongue that extends to catch prey such as spiders or Rapier Wasps. The latter insects are a main part of their diet as well and because of their strong immune systems, they are very resistant to being poisoned or getting sick."

"Aww, thanks, little guy," Azalea said as she began to gently pet the lizard in Sunset's hand. The reptile seemed to enjoy Azalea's gentle touch and soon crawled on her hand to reach her shoulder and apparently nuzzle her like a cat. "I think he likes me," Azalea said with a smile as she rubbed the lizard's back. "Where did he come from?"

"Oh, Phoenix is my pet back from Garrison Academy," Sunset answered. "He was a gift from Aurora to help try and break me out of the shell I made by not making any friends. I named him that because after I nearly got killed by Grimm, I wanted to rise up from the metaphorical ashes I was buried in and become a new person. She brought him over and I picked him up a few minutes ago."

"That's so sweet," Celadon said as she watched Phoenix move from person to person and get to know to members of Fragment Hunter before reaching Sunset's shoulder again. "So, did have a nice talk with Miss Celeste," she asked her team leader.

"Yeah. She thinks that I don't just connect with people through their minds, but also their Auras as well," Sunset explained. "If that's the case, I bet that I can use my Semblance in combat situations when needed. I just need to practice using my Semblance as much as I can without overworking myself."

"Well, we should probably go and test it out while dealing with Team JADE again," Slate said with anger still in his eyes and voice from earlier.

"Test Semblance and practice team attacks, yes. Revenge on Team JADE, no," Sunset stated as she looked at Slate. "We don't want you to get beat up again... As much as you like the idea of Azalea playing nurse," she mentioned in order to get Slate to calm down. Everyone snickered as they saw Azalea and Slate blushing at what Sunset said.

"Let's just start getting some more training in and see how we can test your abilities," Lapis said to try and change the subject after she finished laughing.

* * *

The members of Fragment Hunter all went out to Beacon Academy's courtyard and saw several students enjoying their afternoon off. As they passed by some groups, they overheard some information about the Beacon Dance that was going to be held next weekend and that Team CFVY was in charge of setting it up. However, the second-year team was sent on an away mission and had to wait until they got back to finish preparing the event. "Oh, we absolutely _must_ get outfits for the dance," Celadon stated. "It's a formal event, so everyone is going to need to look their best."

"As long as I'm not wearing one of those monkey suits... No offense to Sun," Slate voiced. "Vacuo's not exactly a shirt and tie kind of place. He'd agree with me."

"At least we know Azalea has something to wear next weekend. And I'm sure that Slate will be happy to see her in it again," Sunset teased.

"I think everyone will be surprised to see her wear that nice little dress," Cereza said as she and the rest of Fragment Hunter reached the amphitheater again. With the place empty as they arrived, the group was able to get more practice in. "Now then, what should we do first," Cereza asked.

"I think that we should focus on Team Attacks to start," Silver suggested. "Let's figure out what each of our teams can do with each other in combat and figure out specifics from there."

"Good call. You and Team SLVR already have a few tactics when working together anyway," Sunset reminded. "Maybe we could figure out codenames for the attacks?"

"I vote 'Punk Rock' for the Fastball Special," Rua called out as she raised her shield up.

"That might be easy to remember," Layla said. "Somebody should write these down."

"Already on it, darlings," Celadon told the rest of her friends as she began to write down a list for remembering the Team Attack names in a notebook. "Rua... Punk Rock... Oh, how about 'Fantasia' for that combination Vinyl and I used against that King Taijitu," she stated as she turned to her teammates. Vinyl smiled and gave a thumbs-up to the idea. "Marvelous," Celadon said as she wrote the name down.

"How about we figure out which of us can do what together before coming up with more names," Lapis suggested.

"Fine. But I think that you and Vixen's burning whirlwind thing that you used on Terracotta or any other team attack should be called 'Fata Morgana'," Celadon said as she wrote down the third name.

"Now then, let's have Team FCSA do some practice with each other," Sunset stated as she stepped aside for the team to take their positions for battle. "How about starting with Slate and Cereza going against Azalea and Layla?"

"Sounds good to me," Cereza agreed as she and Slate drew their guns and took aim at their sparring partners. Layla and Azalea prepared their weapons for battle as their teammates started to open fire on them. Dodging or deflecting the shots, Layla and Azalea soon approached their opponents with Azalea facing off against Cereza while Layla and Slate fought each other at close range. Cereza and Azalea were equal in combat skill as their punches clashed with each other, but Azalea's superior strength kept pushing Cereza back with each strike she countered. "I think that we should focus on our teamwork, Slate!"

Slate was dodging Layla's scimitar and Dust attacks with his natural agility and countering with the kickboxing style he learned from Terracotta's lessons. Punching Layla in the face, Slate soon continued with a few kicks to her stomach before using the recoil of one of his guns to send himself spinning and delivered an elbow strike to Layla's chest to knock her away. "Alright then," Slate said as he and Cereza stood back to back with their guns drawn. As Azalea and Layla sent fireballs flying toward the two, Cereza used her Time Mirage Semblance as she and Slate dodged. Using the distortion of time to their advantage, the two gunslingers opened fire as they constantly moved around their opponents. When the Time Mirage ended, Azalea and Layla were bombarded with bullets and hit at every possible angle. "Hahaha! That was awesome, Cereza," Slate called out. "What should we call that move?"

"I feel like 'Pistol Dance' is appropriate," Cereza said as she turned toward Celadon. As the blonde of Team SAFR wrote the name down, Azalea and Layla prepared to attack before Cereza stopped the battle to say something. "Let's switch partners around now," she stated. Agreeing with the idea, Slate and Layla teamed up against Azalea and Cereza. "Let's get back to it," Cereza announced as she and Azalea charged forward.

* * *

After an eventful afternoon of training, Fragment Hunter all came up with new Team Attacks with their own teams and each other. "Man, I'm exhausted," Layla said as she stretched. "Then again, I did get punched, shot, kicked, shot, slashed, and shot multiple times."

"You said 'shot' three times," Rua remarked.

"A few of us have guns and Semblances that can actually substitute for a firearm," Silver reminded. "So, what do we do now?"

"I still want to test out my Semblance," Sunset mentioned as the group of twelve reached the mess hall for dinner. "Who knows what I can do with my abilities if I train them?"

"Like what," Nora Valkyrie asked as Team JNPR and Team RWBY all sat down with the already large group.

"I don't know, but that's why I want to try," Sunset said. "Any of you guys mind if I check out what's going on in your heads," she asked as she looked at the seven students that joined her before noticing something. "Where's Blake?"

"...She's busy with something," Ruby answered as she rubbed the back of her head. "But, go ahead and search away."

"I'm game," Yang said as she started munching on some grapes.

"Oh, me first," Nora practically shouted as she grabbed Sunset's hand on placed it on her forehead. As soon as she did, Sunset activated her Semblance and entered Nora's mind to see what was happening in the bubbly girl's thoughts. Looking around, Sunset saw some sort of happy-looking landscape that was possibly ripped straight out of a cartoon aimed at little girls. Soon, she saw Nora merrily skipped while carrying her weapon and killing several Grimm that just showed up before pancakes began to rain down from the sky. Eventually, Sunset soon saw Lie Ren approach Nora and the latter seemed to get weak knees before falling to the ground. Sunset could swear that she saw hearts surrounding Nora and Ren as the latter helped his childhood friend to her feet.

After seeing enough, Sunset soon exited Nora's head and had one thing to say as she looked on with a thousand-yard stare. "That explains so much..."

"Was it raining pancakes in my head," Nora asked.

"Yeah. And apparently there something with Ren tha-" Sunset explained before Nora shoved a loaf of bread into Sunset's mouth. Looking at Ren's direction, the two girls saw that he was focusing on his meal rather than overhearing what Sunset said. "Okay. I'll just call that your 'happy place'. I get the feeling that most of the time, you're in there a lot," Sunset told Nora.

"Yeah. I'm not in there all the time, though," Nora admitted. "So, anyone else's head you want to see into?"

Sunset thought about who to try using her Semblance on next before she decided to check out one of Fragment Hunter's inner thoughts. "Hey, Rua? You mind me taking a look at your head," Sunset asked.

"Knock yourself out," Rua said before Sunset placed her hand on Rua's arm and activated her Semblance. When she did, Sunset saw that she was in a village in Sanus and was standing in front of an orphanage. Looking at the building, she soon heard someone crying and another person screaming in anger. Turning toward the commotion, Sunset noticed that a little boy about 9 years old was crying his eyes out before seeing what looked like an 11-year-old brunette-haired girl that was beating up a larger boy. "You say you're sorry, NOW," the girl said in Rua's voice.

Sunset immediately figured out that this was Rua herself before she saw one of the caretakers of the orphanage stop the fight and try to talk to Rua about her violent behavior. The scene soon changed to a school where Rua slammed another bully into a wall for shoving a girl to the floor. "I guess that some things are just wired into your very being," Sunset mused to herself as she saw a teacher berate Rua and the bully. "I wonder why Rua even became interested in being a Huntress like she did if she just keeps getting in fights?"

Sunset's question to herself was soon answered when the scenery changed back to the orphanage and a few Grimm managed to show up. Most of the kids were running inside for safety, but Rua stayed behind to save a little girl who ran back out for her toy. Seeing the girl in trouble, the young Rua's body soon flashed a bright purplish-red and she teleported in front of the Beowolf with a trashcan lid to act as a shield. After the Grimm slashed the item to pieces, Rua grabbed a nearby pipe and goaded the Beowolf to fight her while the girl ran to the orphanage. Sunset saw that even though Rua was taking a few scratches, she kept beating away at the Grimm with the pipe until it became too bent to use. Seeing the damage that she already dealt, Rua used her hand-to-hand skills to further injure the Grimm before grabbing a large rock and teleporting above the monster to let gravity do the rest of the work.

As the rock crushed the Grimm's head in, Rua panted heavily as a few Huntsman students from Beacon Academy and their instructor approached the girl. They managed to see the fight and were impressed with how Rua handled herself. With the adults talking about it, Rua was soon shown to leave the orphanage and began to attend a combat school. Seeing enough, Sunset exited Rua's memories and looked at the girl. "I've got to say, that was pretty awesome of you back when you were 11," Sunset said before explaining Rua's memory to everyone.

"Man... Too bad you didn't attend Sanctuary Academy with me," Azalea muttered.

"Alright. Who's next," Slate asked to change the topic after he placed his hat on Azalea's head.

"How about you, Slate? How did you handle getting here from Vacuo," Sunset said as she reached to grab his shoulder and activated her Semblance again. Journeying into the gunslinger's mind, Sunset soon saw an airship that was under attack by some flying Grimm. She saw Slate and a few other young Huntsmen and Huntresses in training fighting the monsters off. As Slate managed to nail a Nevermore in the eyes with one of his shots, the demonic raven crashed into him and sent him falling off the ship. "Oh no! How did he even get through this," Sunset asked herself before seeing Slate hit the water below the ship. Thinking that he used his Semblance to at least survive the fall, Sunset waited for Slate to get out of the water only to see that it was taking too long. After a few more seconds, Sunset soon saw Slate shooting out of the water suddenly and fire an Ice Dust bullet at the water to give himself a solid platform to land on. Slate soon coughed up water from his lungs before the airship began to slowly lower itself and dropped a rope for the gunslinger to climb up. Seeing enough, Sunset left Slate's mind and turned to face him. "You can't swim?!"

"You try finding a community pool in Vacuo and ask for swimming lessons," Slate countered. "Kind of hard to do when you live in the middle of a ravaged desert wasteland."

The rest of Fragment Hunter had to agree about Slate's point before they soon saw Professor Ozpin walk by. "Hey, I wonder what's going on in Ozpin's head," Sunset pondered out loud before approaching the headmaster. "Professor Ozpin! I need to ask you something," Sunset called out to get the teacher's attention before grabbing his wrist. As soon as she did, swarms of images flooded Sunset's mind and she clutched her skull. "AAAAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!" Sunset cried out in pain as she collapsed to her knees and held her head in agony.

"Sunset," Azalea, Vinyl, and the rest of Fragment Hunter called out with Team RWBY and Team JNPR all surrounding the girl.

* * *

In the infirmary at Beacon Academy, Sunset rested on a bed with Fragment Hunter and Professor Ozpin by her side before she began to sit up. "Where am I? Ah! My head! It feels like a steamroller crushed it," she said as she held her head in pain.

"Sunset! You're alright," Azalea exclaimed as she hugged the girl tightly. "You were out cold for an hour!"

"Um... Azalea? You might want to let her go now. Even if she might enjoy it a little," Rua said as she pointed to the fact that Sunset's face was currently buried in Azalea's sweater. Azalea blushed and chuckled weakly in embarrassment as she released Sunset.

"Do you remember anything before you passed out," Silver asked.

"I... remember that Slate... he can't swim," Sunset said as she tried to remember what happened earlier. "After that... I tried to use my Semblance on Professor Ozpin... then I just saw these blurry things. Only a few of them were actually clear," she explained. "I think one of them was 'The Four Maidens'?"

"That's my family's favorite fairy tale," Azalea remarked.

"One of my favorites as well," Professor Ozpin admitted. "For now, I just think that Miss Blaze has overworked her Semblance for the time being. With all that training you did today before testing the limits of your mental abilities, it appears that you've hit a bump in the road," the headmaster surmised. "I believe that the best choice to make right now is to take a break and recover from this migraine you suffered. Your powers aren't going anywhere, but you can't expect to discover everything about them immediately."

"Yeah... Maybe a few video games or band practice would be best for now," Sunset agreed. "Come on, guys. Let's get back to the dorms."

"Bye, Professor Ozpin," Lapis said as Fragment Hunter all left the infirmary.

When they did, Ozpin sighed and took a long sip from his coffee mug. "They have so much to learn," he said to himself. "I just hope that they can enjoy the time they currently have."

* * *

Outside of Vale's borders, Terracotta Gaia was waiting for his client to arrive at a designated rendezvous point and was whittling away at a block of wood to pass the time. Rather than carving a bull skull this time, Terra was making a butterfly carving in hopes of giving it to Azalea as a gift. Seeing that it was nearly time to meet up with the client for his bodyguarding assignment, Terra put his stuff away and watched as a car approached him. As the vehicle came to a stop, a man in a dark suit and sunglasses stepped out and looked at Terracotta. "Are you the Huntsman that we asked for," the man asked.

"That would be me," Terra replied as he showed the man his Huntsman License. "Are you my client for my escort mission?"

"No. That would be my charge, Miss Coloratura," the suited man said as he gestured to a blonde teenage girl in the back seat rolling down the window of the car. She saw Terracotta and waved to him before waiting for the man to finish speaking with Terra. "She's expected to arrive in Vale in order to prepare for a concert taking place about a week or two before the Vytal Festival. I trust that you can help protect her when she wishes?"

"Absolutely," Terracotta answered. "You can count on me to do my job as a Huntsman. Just know that I have to return to Beacon Academy to help train some of the students participating in the tournament as well."

The man in the suit seemed offended and spoke to Terracotta. "Sir, I believe that you should focus on treating Miss Coloratura as your number one priority while you're partaking in this j-"

"Oh, let him go help them out," the girl in the car said. "Besides, Terra here has known me since I was a baby. I know he can be trusted because he has a daughter of his own that he would protect with his life."

The man looked hesitant, but he took a breath and turned back to the teenager. "If that's what you want, Miss Coloratura," he said before opening the back door of the vehicle for Terracotta. When the Bull Faunus sat down and closed the door, the man in the suit entered the car again and started it. "We'll make it to the hotel in another hour," the man told the passengers in the backseat.

"Good. I can actually relax for a change and meet up with an old friend," the girl commented. "Maybe a meet and greet with some fans, too."

"That will all depend on what happens when we reach Vale," Terracotta mentioned with a smirk. "So how has life been treating you since you left for Atlas," he asked the blonde. She only laughed to herself before explaining a few things to Terracotta.

* * *

 **Done! And with this chapter, I've introduced Aurora Celeste and started to have Fragment Hunter work on Team Attacks. Not only that, but Sunset's Semblance has been getting stronger, we meet the first pet of Fragment Hunter, and a few events with Fragment Hunter have been revealed.**

 **I wanted the last scene with Ozpin to be important to show both the limits of Sunset's powers as well as make a hint to his true nature as shown in Volume 5. Sunset herself is fine, but she's going to be a little more careful around Ozpin with her Semblance just in case.**

 **As for Phoenix the Whip Tongue Leopard Gecko, I thought that with Rapier Wasps being a thing in RWBY, why not have other unique animals being a thing in Remnant? Leopard geckos are normally cool-looking, so why not make them a little more like other lizards as well? I hope that you like the little lizard addition to the team.**

 **Up next for the story, we'll be seeing Terracotta return after his mission and bringing someone else along with him to Beacon Academy. It's not going to be 'Coloratura', but it IS a female that had a cameo already. So, be prepared to meet up with her next time. And 'Coloratura' is also important as well, so you'll know more about her in the future. Just know that she'll befriend Fragment Hunter.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick out!**


	17. Mother Knows Best

**Hey, readers. WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Sunset and Fragment Hunter met Aurora Celeste before getting some practice with Team Attacks and Sunset's Semblance. Seeing a few things about her friends, Sunset then tried to read Ozpin's mind before she suffered an overload-induced migraine. After recovering from it, she's going to be more careful after that, but she'll still try and develop her Semblance to find out more of its abilities to connect with people through their minds and Aura. What's in store for our friends in Fragment Hunter this time? Find out now.**

 **Let's start!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my Original Characters**

* * *

On Monday morning, Fragment Hunter were all in Oobleck's history class as he talked about events that happened a few years after the Great War. "And after everything that occurred after the war itself, the territories of Vacuo never fully recovered from the damages dealt in the final battle," the teacher explained before taking a sip of his coffee. "Any questions?" Seeing that nobody was going to ask anything about the current topic, Doctor Oobleck decided to change the subject both figuratively _and_ literally. "Now then, the village of Tsubaki in Anima's southern regions is known as the birthplace as a monk named simply as 'Cintamani'," Oobleck explained. "This man was known as a warrior that took part in numerous battles during his travels across Remnant. The instances of where and when he fought always depict him as granting victory to whoever he allied himself with. Does anyone care to answer as to why that is?"

The students in Oobleck's class were all stumped and couldn't answer the question. "I've never heard of this guy," one student from Vacuo with bat ears commented as she turned to her teammates.

"Who's 'Cintamani'," an Atlas student with a robotic left arm asked his friends.

"I don't know this," Lapis admitted to her friends and teammates. "Any of you guys?"

"Nope," Slate bluntly said.

"Not a clue," Sunset stated.

After a few moments of silence, Doctor Oobleck took another sip of his coffee before sighing. "Well, I suppose that this is more obscure compared to the other lessons we've covered," Oobleck admitted. "I doubt that any of you have even heard the warrior monk, Cintamani."

"Cintamani's main feats of victory stem from his Semblance that allowed him to physically empower others. By using his Semblance to coat himself or allies in a mystical blue flame, their strength was increased dramatically and they were able to continue fighting against impossible odds," a female voice said as everyone turned to the door of the classroom. "The strength increase also allowed those who didn't have their Aura unlocked to shake off being shot with bullets. During Cintamani's travels, he aided those in need and was essentially considered a Huntsman despite never attending one of the recently formed Academies. Over the years of using his power, stories claim that his weapon has been exposed to his Semblance so much that legends say that wielding it will grant the current holder the same abilities as Cintamani himself," the woman explained.

Everyone in the classroom was surprised to see the woman at the door and took notice of her beautiful appearance. She was 5'9" with two-inch white cow horns that easily identified her as a Faunus, had tanned skin like she spent most of her time outside, and her reddish-brown hair fell down to reach past her chest. She had a very prominent and voluptuous hourglass figure with wide hips, a narrow and toned waist, and large breasts that looked even bigger than Azalea's did. If Oobleck and the students weren't looking at the woman's figure they saw that she looked extremely similar to Azalea herself as they had the same hair color, the same vibrant green eyes, and similar faces. The Faunus woman had magenta lipstick and eyeshadow, a black choker with a cross that had four stars in the corners, and wore a ruby-like necklace that rested on her bosom.

"Um... Azalea? Darling? Do you know her," Celadon asked as everyone kept staring at the gorgeous woman who entered the room and several students began to blush.

The Faunus woman walked forward to reveal she was wearing a gold earring with an emerald center in her left ear when she adjusted her hair. She wore a white ruffled button-up blouse that revealed plenty of cleavage, a brown bodice with brass buttons and a black belt around her waist, a green skirt that reached her knees, and brown boots. She stopped when she saw the members of Team FCSA staring at her and waved to them. "Hi, Sugarcube," she greeted as she waved to Azalea.

"Mom?! What are you doing here," Azalea exclaimed and asked as she saw the woman.

Upon hearing what Azalea called the newcomer, everyone had similar reactions to when Terracotta's relation to Azalea was revealed. As students from all four Academies looked back and forth between Azalea and her mother, Fragment Hunter were the most surprised. Vinyl's sunglasses fell off of her face as her jaw dropped, Slate and Silver looked at the two Faunus women with bright red faces, Sunset kept mumbling something to herself as she pointed a finger at her friend, and the other members of Fragment Hunter were speechless until Layla spoke up.

"Wow... Azalea wasn't kidding," Layla Carbuncle mused loud enough for the others to hear. "She really _does_ take after her mom."

"She looks more like her sister," Rebecca commented.

"No. Azalea said that she's an only child," Slate managed to say as he kept staring.

After the shock of learning who the woman was, Oobleck collected himself and introduced himself to Azalea's mother. "Greetings, ma'am. My name is Doctor Bartholomew Oobleck. Huntsman and History teacher at Beacon Academy. It's a pleasure to meet you," he said as he extended a hand forward.

"The pleasure's all mine. Ivy Dahlia Holstein. Just call me Ivy," the woman responded as she shook Oobleck's hand. "I take it that with your lesson including Cintamani, you've been covering events that happened in the first few years after the Great War?"

"Why, yes we have," Oobleck replied. "I must say that I'm surprised that you understand such an obscure historical figure."

"I'm surprised that you've been teaching my daughter and her classmates about him," Ivy said with a small smile.

"I believe that if you don't learn from history, you are doomed to repeat it," Oobleck told Ivy and the students before the bell rang out to signal the end of the lesson. "It appears that with our surprise visitor, we've lost track of time. I want you all to study about warriors that surfaced soon after the Great War as we will cover them in a test on Thursday," he said to the students as they began to leave.

As everyone began to exit the classroom, they kept staring at Ivy as they passed by her. A few students ended up bumping into each other or the door as they continued to look at the Cow Faunus. Soon, only Fragment Hunter and Ivy were left in the room. "What are you doing here, Mom," Azalea asked as she walked up next to Ivy.

"Your father invited me up here to help chaperone the upcoming dance and I thought it would be the perfect way to see my baby girl," Ivy replied as she hugged her daughter. As Azalea returned the hug, the rest of Fragment Hunter kept staring until the mother and daughter separated. "So, are you going to introduce me to your friends, Sugarcube? Because I get the feeling they're not in much of a talking mood," she said with a smirk and tittered.

Most of the teenagers coughed as they regained their senses and turned back to Ivy. Azalea only rolled her eyes at how they acted before introducing Fragment Hunter. "Mom, these are Silver Wuruhi, Lapis, Ondine, Vixen Kosaku, and Rua Amaranth," Azalea said as she pointed to Team SLVR. "Sunset Blaze, Vinyl Aurum, Celadon Flynn, and Rebecca Haze," she stated as she gestured toward Team SAFR. "And my team, Cereza Fujita, Layla Carbuncle, and Slate Quartz."

"Ah, yes. I know you," Ivy said as she looked at Slate. The boy looked nervous as Ivy gazed at him and he covered his face with his hat. "Terracotta sent me some pictures of when you took Sugarcube on her first date," she explained as she pulled out her Scroll and revealed two pictures to the group. The first was Azalea in her little black dress when she was shown to the guys, but the second was a shock to the teenagers. They could see that the second photo had Azalea holding Slate's head as she kissed him on the cheek and leave a fuchsia lipstick mark over his scar.

"HOW DID HE GET THIS PICTURE," Azalea shouted in surprise. "We didn't see him at all!"

"This is actually a pretty good photo," Vinyl commented as she looked at Ivy's Scroll.

"You'd be amazed at what your father can do," Ivy stated as she put her Scroll away. "But we're not focusing on him now. I'm just so happy that my baby girl is growing up so fast," she exclaimed as she hugged Azalea again.

"She'll probably end up like you if that's the case," Silver muttered before he realized what he said and slapped a hand over his mouth. Celadon slapped the Wolf Faunus in the back of the head and he fell to the ground. "I deserved that," Silver said as he pushed himself back up.

"Honestly, Silver... You need to watch what you say around women like Mrs. Holstein," Celadon scolded. "Tits rude to say things like that... 'IT'S'! I meant 'it's'," she said in a panic when she mistakenly said the wrong word.

"Wow... I can't believe that Celadon would slip out like that," Layla commented before she realized what she said. "UP! UP! Slip up," she hastily corrected herself.

Azalea sighed as her mother chuckled at everything in amusement. "This always happens with my mom," Azalea said. "Her looks tend to be something that sticks with somebody until they get used to her being around."

"There's nothing wrong with having a good figure," Ivy stated. "Some of your friends seem to share my opinion," she said as Cereza, Celadon, and Lapis all nodded their heads.

Sunset soon realized something as she turned to Azalea and used her Semblance to telepathically communicate with her. " _When I was looking through your head the first time, I saw you with a Dove Faunus named Bianca that looked kind of familiar, but that's not important right now. I heard her tell you that you were just as beautiful as your mother and I felt this warm sensation near where you were sitting. I think that I saw a strong presence of your mom in your mammaries. MEMORIES!"_

"No need to yell, Sunset. We were literally talking with our minds," Azalea said after she flinched from Sunset correcting herself.

"Oh yeah, Azalea's letters kept mentioning you as well," Ivy mentioned. "You've been such a great friend to her. I haven't seen or heard her talk that way about someone since Bianca."

"Thank you, Mrs. Holstein," Sunset replied.

"Please, call me Ivy. Hearing you all call me that makes me seem old," Ivy told Sunset and the rest of Fragment Hunter. "Come on. You kids _should_ get your studies done. I brought some cookies for you all to enjoy while you do that." As soon as cookies were mentioned, Azalea immediately rushed out of the room to return to the dorms. "She always _did_ enjoy my baking."

"What kid could refuse treats from their mom," Lapis retorted as she and the others headed to the courtyard. They soon met up with Azalea in the courtyard, Ivy and Fragment Hunter were getting attention from the students and faculty that were outside with them. Seeing that most of the stares were toward Ivy, Lapis turned to the woman to ask her something. "Is this normal for you?"

"Yeah, it is," Ivy admitted. "I've been turning heads in Mirabelle since I was a teenager. I'm glad to know that I still have that effect on people," she said with a confident smile and a flip of her hair. As the group of thirteen made their way through the courtyard, Rebecca suddenly stopped and Silver bumped into her. "What's wrong," Ivy asked.

"Something's coming at us," Rebecca said as she stood ready for a fight.

"What would attack us here in the middle of Beacon Academy in the middle of broad daylight," Silver asked before he and the rest of Fragment Hunter heard something charging toward them. Turning to the source of the sound, Silver soon saw that nothing was there until he heard something above him and saw something blocking the sunlight from his vision. "This won't end well," Silver muttered before he was crushed underneath something large and heavy. Silver could only give off muffled yells of frustration as he tried to get the object off of him.

The rest of Fragment Hunter was confused by what happened and looked at what landed on top of Silver. A large dog with a coat of reddish fur was laying down on top of the Wolf Faunus and panting with his tail wagging happily as he looked at the teenagers. The dog looked like a mix between a Great Dane and a Wolfhound, had brown eyes, and wore a green collar with a tag that depicted a dog's head in the center of a shield. The dog barked as he looked at Fragment Hunter before getting off of Silver and approaching Azalea. Placing his front paws on her shoulders and licking her face, the dog made Azalea laugh in delight and she soon started to scratch him behind the ears. "Hahahahaha! Dante! Down, boy! I'm glad to see you, too," Azalea laughed.

Silver slowly stood up and caught his breath after suddenly being stuck under the large canine. "I knew it wouldn't end well," he stated after cracking his neck and back. "This is Dante?"

"Yeah. I didn't expect Mom to bring him with her," Azalea said as Dante got off of her.

Ivy chuckled before speaking up. "He's not the only one," she said before whistling off toward the distance. "Diana! Drei!" As soon as Ivy whistled, a tricolor collie and a tan corgi came running toward the group. The two new dogs immediately started to circle around Ivy before seeing Azalea and leaned up against her. Both Ivy and her daughter kneeled down to pet the dogs as the former spoke to the other teenagers. "All three of them missed Azalea, so I thought that bringing them along would be good for them."

"I can tell," Sunset remarked with a playful roll of her eyes. "Although, I _can_ feel the powerful emotions from them. I guess that Azalea just has a way with animals," the flame-haired girl commented.

"You should see how the horses back on the farm act when I'm around," Azalea said as she rubbed Drei's belly. "Same with the cats that deal with mice and other pests. Although, they prefer to be alone most of the time."

"You know, I'm wondering if these dogs are going to be a problem with Professor Ozpin," Celadon mentioned.

"Oh, I'm sure that I can convince him that it's not a big deal as long as they behave," said a deep voice that approached the group. Everyone turned to see Terracotta had returned from his mission and waved at them. Almost immediately when she saw him, Ivy rushed to her husband and jumped for him to catch her in his arms. As Terra carried his wife, they smiled with flirtatious looks in their eyes and Ivy pulled him in for a passionate kiss. When they separated, Terracotta and Ivy smiled at each other as she hugged him. "I never get tired of that," Terra remarked as he kissed his wife on the cheek.

* * *

After Fragment Hunter finished their studies for the day, they all began to dig into the cookies that Ivy brought with her with Terracotta, Aurora, and Nocturne joining them. They were mildly surprised by the amount that she brought with her, but understood that Azalea and Terracotta probably ate a lot at home. Not only that, but Azalea did write about all the friends she made at Beacon as well. "Maybe next time I should bring a crate of chocolate chip for all of you," Ivy commented as she watched all of Fragment Hunter devour her baking while keeping the dogs from eating any stray crumbs.

"These are _delicious_ , Ma'am," Slate said before shoving another cookie into his mouth. "Anybody got mil-" Just before Slate could finish asking his question, he realized who he was with and immediately shut himself up with a few more cookies before covering his bright red face with his hat.

"At least he stopped himself," Rua snarked before biting down on the last cookie she had.

"Unlike me when I first had Ivy's baking during my team's training mission at Mirabelle," Terracotta commented. "Me and Ivy ended up getting laughed at by my teammate Orchid Tilia because we were blushing so hard after I said it."

"You were such a dork back then," Ivy stated as she laughed at the memory with a small blush on her cheeks. "It was still cute, though."

"No matter how many times I see or hear it, I never tire of the fact that the two of you are meant to be with each other," Aurora said as she enjoyed her own cookie before sipping a cup of tea.

"Speaking of 'together', did you or Nocturne find somebody to settle down with," Ivy asked the pink-haired Huntress.

Aurora's eyes immediately shot open as she spat out her drink and it splashed all over Slate while Nocturne fell to the floor in shock. "W-what?! No! I mean... I haven't yet," Aurora said as she lost her composure and had to calm herself down. "Neither has Nocturne."

"I'm okay," Nocturne remarked as she shot a hand up and waved to everyone in the room.

"That's a shame. If only you managed to catch the bouquet at our wedding," Terracotta stated before he began to laugh. "Hahahaha! I still can't believe all of that happened over some flowers," he guffawed.

"I don't think anyone who attended the wedding will forget that fight," Ivy snickered as Aurora and Nocturne had sheepish expressions on their faces.

"Okay. I've got to see this for myself," Sunset declared before she grabbed Terracotta's arm and activated her Semblance to find the memory that had her teachers embarrassed.

* * *

Sunset soon found herself at a large farm that had been set up for a wedding and a reception. When she counted the number of people, it looked like an entire village was invited as she saw everyone sitting down for the ceremony. Sunset headed toward the crowd and went to get a closer look at the guests when she noticed Terracotta pacing back and forth in a tuxedo. "How in the heck did they get one in his size? You would think that thing would explode if he flexed," Sunset said to herself.

Looking around, Sunset noticed a few familiar faces and some that she couldn't recognize immediately. She saw Aurora and Nocturne as bridesmaids along with a Gecko Faunus with a tail, a girl who looked like Azalea with white horns and apple red hair, a woman who looked like an older version of Ruby Rose, a woman that looked like Yang Xiao Long with black hair, and a Cat Faunus that looked like Blake Belladonna with shorter hair. On the groom's side, Sunset saw that the groomsmen consisted of the same Falcon Faunus that she saw saved Azalea from Rapier Wasps, two dark-haired men, a male who looked like a male version of Yang, a large Faunus man with black hair, and even Professor Ozpin. "I only recognize a few of these other people. Maybe some are related to Ruby and Yang," she commented before turning to the two dark-haired Faunus. "Maybe those two are Blake's parents?"

Soon, music started playing and everyone turned their attention to the bride walking down the aisle. Sunset, the guests, bridesmaids, groomsmen, and Terracotta were all speechless over Ivy in her wedding dress. When Ivy and Terracotta stood with each other, the ceremony became background noise as they stared into each other's eyes and smiled. Sunset thought that it was a sweet moment between the two before the scene changed to the reception. "Okay, ladies! It's time to toss the bouquet," Ivy announced and got into position.

Right when the bride told everyone what was happening, the bridesmaids all grouped up before they glared at each other. Most of them pulled out weapons and were prepared to battle each other for the bouquet. With swords and knives drawn, several onlookers looked panicked until Terracotta calmed them down. As the bouquet was tossed into the air, the women began to lock blades or grapple with each other before the redheaded Faunus girl charged through all of them and knocked them all to the ground before she jumped up to grab the flowers. "YES! I GOT IT," she exclaimed as she landed. Terracotta and Ivy laughed at the sight of what just happened and that the lucky girl just floored several trained warriors instantly.

* * *

Sunset shook her head as she returned from using her Semblance and looked at Ivy. "Who was that doppelganger of Azalea with apple red hair," she asked.

"Oh, that was my little sister, Malus," Ivy stated before turning to Aurora and Nocturne. "I still can't believe that she knocked down Summer, Raven, Orchid, _and_ the two of you! Kali was the only one who wasn't ready to cut somebody down," she laughed.

"I still don't like that memory," Nocturne said as she dug into another cookie.

"Malus just really wanted to find a boyfriend of her own because of seeing me and Ivy," Terracotta said as he pulled his wife into his embrace with one arm. "And now she has a husband of her own. I'm happy for my sister-in-law."

"Same here," Ivy agreed before she looked at Azalea enjoying the company of her friends and family. As the twelve teenagers started talking about the upcoming dance, the Vytal Festival, and a few other things, Ivy kept smiling as she watched Azalea's behavior with her friends. "She's never been happier, Terra. This was for the best, wasn't it?"

Terracotta looked at Azalea and the other members of Fragment Hunter as he nodded. "Yeah. Our little flower has been blooming, but she still needs time to grow and learn," he stated. "Luckily, she's got some help from her friends. And she'll get more as they stay together." Soon, Terracotta's Scroll started to ring and he answered the device. "Hello? Yeah, I can come over to help now. See you in a few minutes," he replied as he heard the person on the other line. "I've got to get going. I'm technically still on my mission," Terracotta said to everyone.

"Really," Vixen asked.

"Yup. I'm just bodyguarding someone important who's in the city for a concert in time for the Vytal Festival," Terra explained.

"I need to check something if that's the case," Vinyl said as she pulled out her Scroll and searched for upcoming concerts online.

"Don't bother. Everything still needs to be set up the right way because my client's manager is pretty strict about details," Terracotta stated as he began to leave. "Besides, you have that dance to look forward to this weekend."

"We still need to get outfits for it," Celadon exclaimed. "I hope that we have some or can get them."

"I'm sure that we can help all of you," Ivy said as she stood next to Aurora and Nocturne.

* * *

After a shopping trip for new clothes to wear to the Beacon Dance, Fragment Hunter all went off to either train, practice their music, or just relax after the eventful day. Azalea was playing with Dante and Drei in the courtyard as the sun began to set. Soon, Ivy found her daughter and sat next to her as Drei climbed onto the older Faunus' lap. "Hi, Mom," Azalea said.

"Hi, Sugarcube," Ivy replied. "Your friends are all very nice. They seem like they would have been great to have back at Mirabelle."

"Yeah... They would have," Azalea agreed sadly. Dante and Drei saw that Azalea was upset and whined a little before Dante began to lean against Azalea. Azalea smiled a little before petting her dog's head.

"Azalea, we both know that we can't change the past. All we can do is move on after times of sadness," Ivy said. "We can look back on all the days that have gone by and see what has changed since then. And I see that you've gained a number of loved ones that would defend you from anything. Especially that Slate boy." Azalea blushed at the mention of Slate defending her and recalled when he fought against her bullies from Sanctuary Academy. "Do you remember how your father and I met each other?"

"The time he and his team were on a training mission at Mirabelle and met you on the farm? Or when he literally beat the crap out of the thugs that were going to do things to you," Azalea asked as she listed the two important times Ivy and Terracotta met each other.

"The second one, Sugarcube," Ivy specified before continuing. "I was already smitten with him when we were teenagers, but him saving me made me realize that I wanted to be with him. I'm glad that he had the same thoughts," she said as she brought her fingers up to the ruby-like necklace she wore and sighed lovingly. "After hearing what Slate has done for you just to make you feel better, I have the feeling that you and he were meant to be together just like your father and I."

Azalea blushed even more at the idea of her mother saying that she and Slate were meant to be together. "Mom! It's not like that! Besides... it was only one date," Azalea exclaimed before muttering the last part.

"Yes, but with the dance coming up, I think that you'll be having more than one date with him," Ivy teased. "If it makes you feel any better, I was pretty much the same as you were when I was around Terra as a teenager."

"I'm having a hard time believing that, Mom," Azalea remarked in a deadpan tone.

Ivy chuckled at Azalea's response before continuing. "I wasn't a wallflower like you, but I always did feel a little awkward when I saw Terracotta while he was training on the farm without a shirt on. At least before things became more... intimate." Azalea dry heaved at the thought of her parents in the bedroom before Ivy spoke up again. "What I'm saying is, the more time you spend with somebody you love, the faster you'll change for the better. Platonically, romantically, or sexually."

"I don't think that last one is going to happen," Azalea muttered with a blush so bright that her face began to blend in with her hair.

"Well, not now. I'd rather be a grandmother by the time you normally graduate from here," Ivy teased.

"MOM!"

Ivy only laughed at her daughter's embarrassment while she pet the corgi on her lap and the sun disappeared over the horizon.

* * *

 **Done with the chapter and I hope that you all enjoyed meeting Ivy Dahlia Holstein! For scenes involving her, I picture a mandolin playing in the background of her moments just like how I imagine Terracotta having a rock/metal leitmotif.**

 **Now for the piece of lore at the start of the chapter, the name 'Cintamani' comes from the Cintamani Stone from Hindu and Buddhist traditions. An equivalent to the Philosopher's Stone, this blue jewel is said to grant wishes. I got the name and idea for the character from Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (which is a GREAT game that I loved playing) thinking that the treasure was perfect for a RWBY character. The abilities of the item itself also made sense as a Semblance, so that was something that I tried working into my story.**

 **As for the memory scene with the bouquet, I just thought it would have been funny if trained Huntresses would physically battle over the bouquet toss if they attended a wedding. Combine that with the idea of fully trained warriors getting blindsided by a regular girl before swiping the flowers from them and I've at least got something for myself to laugh at.**

 **Now with the Beacon Dance coming up for Sideline, I'm going to need to figure out dress ideas for most of Fragment Hunter's female members while the boys are just going to wear tuxedos with appropriate color details. If any of you have ideas to help me out, feel free to share them. Especially since I've got a character I enjoyed making showing up at the dance.**

 **Also, I decided that with the Vytal Festival coming up, I needed to include some small cameos from other teams I have planned. I'm pretty sure that you all want to know about the boy with the robot arm mentioned around the beginning of the chapter and anyone else I've got planned for Fragment Hunter to face off against in the tournament.**

 **Until next chapter, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	18. Rivals and Romance

**Hi everyone. WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". If you remember the last chapter, we got a visit from Azalea's mother, Ivy Dahlia Holstein. With her in the story now, we're closer to the Beacon Dance. So, it's time that I started introducing some friends/rivals from other schools since Team JADE is the only one covered so far and most of them are just antagonists. These next few characters are going to be nicer, but still a threat in a fight.**

 **Ready? FIGHT!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own in this story are my own Original Characters**

* * *

Everyone on campus was talking about a number of things such as the upcoming dance during Sunday, Team CFVY not returning from their mission yet, the Vytal Festival Tournament, and the new arrival of Azalea's mother who had pretty much captivated a majority of the school with her looks and charm. As for Fragment Hunter themselves, they all had varying levels of excitement for the Beacon Dance during the weekend. Unfortunately, the teenagers could barely get any sleep because of a strange and loud noise that kept most of them up. The only one who was actually getting sleep was Azalea who had a peaceful smile on her face as she hugged Drei, who was sleeping next to her while Dante was at the foot of her bed. "How is it they can sleep through this," Slate groaned as he covered his ears to block out the sound.

"I have no idea and I'm jealous of her," Layla moaned as she covered her head with her pillow. "What even _is_ that sound?!"

"From what I can tell, somebody is clearly enjoying some... _intimate_ moments," Cereza muttered to herself. "And they're doing so _very loudly_."

" _I don't care,_ " Sunset stated through her Semblance's telepathy. " _Let's just try and get some sleep. We have combat class with Professor Goodwitch tomorrow._ "

When morning came, Azalea yawned as she stretched out of bed. "Morning, team," she said in a chipper tone. "I slept _great_ last night!"

"I'm glad one of us did," Cereza and Layla both replied dryly as they turned to face Azalea. The Faunus flinched at the bags that started to show under the eyes of her teammates.

"Geez, what happened," Azalea asked.

Slate walked through the door with his clothes all messed up and bags over his eyes. "There was this loud squeaking noise last night and none of us could sleep," he explained. "I think we have rats or something in the walls."

"I don't think it was rats," Rebecca said as she walked into Team FSCA's room. "There wasn't any scratching sound with it at all."

"Well, I think we should just get ready for the day," Azalea said as she grabbed her clothes for the day and went to go get changed. As soon as she returned and the rest of Fragment Hunter went for breakfast, they soon ran into Ivy again. "Morning, Mom!"

"Morning, Azalea," Ivy greeted before she saw the state that the rest of Fragment Hunter was in. "Hmm, looks like most of you didn't get enough sleep last night."

"You think," Rua sarcastically stated as she glared at Ivy in annoyance.

"Calm down, Rua," Silver said as he put his hand on his teammate's shoulder. "Maybe we should've stayed in bed a little longer?"

"I'm not going to get detention for showing up late," Celadon stated as she pulled out a compact mirror to check her makeup. "And I would very much like to get something to eat." Soon, Fragment Hunter saw Terracotta approach them as he headed for the showers and noticed something about how he looked this morning. They saw that his face, neck, and torso were covered in pink smudges. Celadon looked closer at the color and noticed something familiar about it before turning back to Ivy. She saw that the marks on Terracotta and Ivy's lipstick were the exact same color before speaking up. "I... don't think that it was _rodents_ keeping everyone but Azalea up all night."

As the other teenagers put it together, Azalea gagged and covered her mouth when she realized what was implied. "GROSS! I didn't need that in my head on an empty stomach," Azalea exclaimed.

"Better than a full stomach," Sunset commented. "Come on, let's just get something to eat."

* * *

After Fragment Hunter reached the mess hall, they ended up running into some trouble in the form of Team JADE. "So, how'd you like the little present we left you, Veal Cut," Aoi Lobelia asked in a malicious tone as she glared at Azalea. As Azalea flinched under the girl's gaze that could literally burn her, Celadon and Layla walked between the two and glared at Team JADE themselves.

"It was actually a pretty good snack for this little guy," Sunset said as she held out her hand and revealed Phoenix crawling onto her palm. "So, I have to thank you three for that."

Jet and Envy just scowled at the group while the latter chewed at a toothpick. "You won't be thanking us when we deal with you in Combat Class later," Envy declared as she pointed a finger at Azalea.

"How about you stop picking on her and deal with me instead," Silver growled as he got in Envy's face.

"It's more fun to treat Dairy Cow like this," Envy said as she glanced at a scared Azalea. "Besides, I don't want to get fleas from you, Mutt."

Silver began to growl like a wolf again before Fragment Hunter all heard somebody approach the four teams. "Leave the girl and her friends alone before I'm the one who deals with you," a pale, muscular boy from Atlas Academy declared as he walked into view. He stood at 6'1", had a brown crew cut, and had greenish-hazel eyes. But everyone could clearly see that the most noticeable thing about this new arrival was that his left arm was robotic. "You really want to fight me," the Atlas boy asked as he grabbed a chair with his left hand and began to tighten his grip.

Jet, Aoi, and Envy looked at the boy grabbing the chair and saw that he started to crack it with ease. Deciding that it wasn't worth it, the three bullies left and Fragment Hunter saw the cyborg turn to them. "Th-thanks," Azalea said as she watched Team JADE walk away.

"No problem, Miss. I just can't stand people like them. Oren Maxwell from Atlas Academy, at your service," he said as he saluted with his right hand. After Fragment Hunter introduced themselves, Maxwell recognized Azalea. "Aren't you the daughter of Terracotta Gaia," he asked.

"Yup. And the _really_ hot mom with the sweet rack," Vinyl said bluntly. After the music lover said that, the rest of Fragment Hunter stared at her with varying expressions. "What? She is and does. Just look at Azalea."

"Can we not, please," Azalea replied as she covered her chest by crossing her arms.

"I was only going to say that your father is a great man," Maxwell stated as he returned the conversation back to the topic at hand. "A strong warrior dedicated to protecting those who can't protect themselves or training them so that they can."

"Yeah. He is," Azalea said with a smile as she remembered good moments with her father.

"I'm looking forward to battling you in the tournament if we face off against each other, Azalea," Maxwell said.

"You might end up facing off against either of us instead of Freckles here," Sunset reminded as she pointed to herself, Team SAFR, and Team SLVR.

"I'd be happy to fight any of you twelve if you've been getting specialized training from Terracotta Gaia. He's known through the Huntsman community as 'The Minotaur of Menagerie'," Maxwell stated. "But I feel like that I might not get the first shot in because of my teammate, Raduga White." After saying the name, a blur sped past the group and the wind following it forced most of the girls to keep their skirts down. "Speak of the rainbow-colored devil and he shall appear," Maxwell remarked with a deadpan face.

"Hey, Maxie! How's it going," a new boy said as he stood next to the cyborg. He was 5'11" with a lean build that looked like it was meant for speed, had pale skin, rose-colored eyes, and short white hair with rainbow-colored bangs covering his forehead. Instead of wearing the Atlas Academy uniform like Oren Maxwell, the newcomer wore a skating bodysuit with a pattern similar to stained glass, a pair of black gloves, and a pair of customized boots with retractable ice skates and what looked like Ice Dust crystals embedded in them. On the chest of the bodysuit, there was a symbol that depicted a snowflake that was split apart into a pair of skates.

"Everyone, meet my teammate, Raduga White," Maxwell introduced as he gestured to the apparent skater with his robotic hand.

"Nice to meet you, ladies," Raduga greeted. "Same to you two," he said to Slate and Silver. After Fragment Hunter replied to the skater, he spoke back up. "The tournament's going to be awesome! This year, Team GLOW is going to win for Atlas!"

"Not if we win first," Silver said with a grin and crossed his arms with Vinyl doing the same next to the Wolf Faunus.

As Maxwell and Raduga had a brief staring contest with Silver and Vinyl, Slate got between the four and separated them. "Calm down, everyone. We need to deal with classes and the dance first, then we can get in each other's faces about the tournament."

"Slate's right. We should get something to eat, then head off to class," Rebecca stated.

"Can't do anything on an empty stomach," Raduga agreed. "Come on, Maxwell. Let's get back to Garnet and Lucy." Maxwell and Raduga saluted Fragment Hunter as they left, then met up with a dog-eared Faunus boy and a blonde girl who were both in Atlas Academy uniforms.

* * *

After Fragment Hunter had breakfast, they went off to their classes for the day. Soon, the twelve teenager warriors were in Professor Goodwitch's class and were listening to her speak before she chose who would fight for the day. "I'm sure that you've all been enjoying classes with the other Beacon alumni teaching, but several of them are unavailable today as they are occupied with other missions. As such, I'll be the only teacher for Combat Class today," Goodwitch said before looking at her Scroll and the stands where the students all sat. "Now for the first match of the day, do we have any volunteers?"

"We'll go," a feminine called out as two hands were raised up. Glynda turned to see that the voice and hands belonged to two girls from Shade Academy in Vacuo. The first girl was a dark-skinned Faunus with bat ears on her head, an athletic build that stood at 5'4", had short black hair, was wearing red lipstick, and her brown eyes scanned the room to look for an opponent. The second girl was a 5'8" blonde with her hair in pigtails that reached her shoulders, an hourglass figure with average proportions, dark gray eyes, and red lipstick as well. "Me and Ebony want to show what we have for the Vytal Festival," the blonde said.

'Ebony' was wearing a brown corset-like top with black and tan sleeves, beige shorts, a pair of spaulders, and a pair of sandals. The blonde wore a corset of her own in black, had a hooded red coat over it with a silver chain acting like a belt, was wearing leather pants with a single greave on her right leg, and heeled black boots. Professor Goodwitch looked at her Scroll to search for student information on the two before she spoke. "Ebony Rain and Jennifer Dawn of Team PRDT? Am I correct?"

"Yup. That would be us," Ebony replied. "We'd like to go first today."

"Very well," Glynda agreed as she looked at the stands. "Would anyone like to go against our first volunteers of the day?"

"We'll do it," Layla said as she and Slate stood up. "It'll be fun to go against somebody from Vacuo like us."

"Perhaps," Ebony said as she went off to collect her weapon with Layla heading off to get her own. When they returned after a few minutes, Ebony's weapon was shown to be a shield with a rifle built in, similar to traditional war shields that had staves or fighting sticks placed on the defensive weapon. Wielding the shield in her left hand, Ebony waited a moment for Layla to join Slate with her weapons. "This could be interesting," Ebony commented as she watched Slate load up his revolvers.

"It _will_ ," Slate said as he spun the cylinders of his guns and looked at Jennifer Dawn, who pulled out her own gun. It was a pistol that resembled a crossbow, but the apparently decorative limbs of the weapon looked like they were sharpened and could fold into another form. This made Slate cautious about getting close to Jennifer in the fight and Layla was silently informed of it when Slate subtly gestured toward the firearm. Layla nodded in understanding as she and Slate prepared for battle against the members of Team PRDT. "We're ready over here, Professor," Slate told Glynda.

"If both sides are ready, then the battle begins immediately," Goodwitch stated as she stepped off to the side. With Aura level displays for all four fighters up, Ebony was the one to make the first move when she started running toward Slate with her shield raised and prepared to block any shots he fired. At the same time, Jennifer Dawn quickly took aim and fired at Slate. Forced to dodge out of the way, Slate was in Ebony's path and she began to strike away at him with her shield, punches with her free hand, and sweeping kicks. Thanks to Terracotta's training, Slate was able to deflect or dodge several of Ebony's attacks, but still got hit with a few of them and was knocked down before Layla used her Semblance to push Ebony back.

When Ebony fell onto her back, Slate started to open fire on her with a few Lightning Dust bullets to zap her. Ebony tried to defend against the attack, but a few of the bullets shocked her and made her stumble back more as her Aura was lowered by a decent chunk. "Jenny, go for it," Ebony called out as she attempted to stand back up. At her teammate's instruction, Jennifer Dawn moved the grip of her pistol and the action moved the sharpened limbs of her crossbow-styled weapon folded to form a single-edged short sword. With the new weapon form shown off, Jenny ran toward Slate to slash away at him before she was stopped by Layla and her scimitar.

The two girls stared each other down for a few seconds before they backed away in order to continue their sword fight. As Layla and Jenny swung their swords, they clashed with each other and sparks flew off both blades. Jennifer tried to use a sweep kick on Layla, but the latter anticipated it and used her Semblance to stop the Shade Academy student's attack before continuing to attack with her scimitar. Slashing at Jenny with a combination of attacks that resembled a dance, Layla was able to knock her opponent away with one final kick. "You're good," Jenny complimented. "But I need to up my game," she said as she pulled the trigger of her weapon while it was in sword form. When she did, the blade split apart and became a whip similar to Silver and Celadon's weapons.

"Oh crap," Layla exclaimed as she saw the whip and had to dodge out of the way. At the same time, Ebony and Slate were continuing their fight by using their weapons to open fire on each other. While Ebony's shield was able to fire more powerful shots than Slate's revolvers, they were being fired at a much slower rate and Slate could easily dodge them at the distance Ebony was at. In contrast, Slate was able to shoot at Ebony easier, but she was able to block the bullets that were fired directly at her. After several failed shots, Slate smirked to himself and started to perform a few trick shots that helped turn the tide of the battle after he reloaded his guns.

As he dodged Ebony's attacks, Slate aimed his revolver toward her at an angle and pulled the trigger. As Ebony raised her shield to defend herself, the bullet bounced off the weapon and began to ricochet around the arena. As it bounced off the walls, the bullet soon hit Jennifer Dawn's weapon just as she caught Layla's scimitar and knocked it out of her hands. However, the bullet continued on its path and struck Ebony in the leg from behind. Crying out when hit, Ebony dropped her shield and was left open to an attack from both Layla and Slate. As the two slashed and kicked at her respectively, Ebony's Aura was lowered considerably and was now in the low yellow levels.

After retrieving her weapon, Jenny used her whip sword to strike at Slate and Layla when their backs were turned. Seeing that Jenny was still a threat in the fight, Layla used her Water Dust to create whips of her own and began to duel against the girl. As the two girls attacked each other with their whips, Layla kept getting hit a few times and Jennifer's weapon was soaking wet. With one final strike from the both of them, Jenny managed to knock Layla's Aura down to the same level as Ebony while Layla managed to drench her opponent completely when she landed a clean hit. Taking her chance, Ebony went after Layla and dealt a devastating combo attack that lowered Layla's Aura into the red. "At least we managed to be the first to knock one of you out," Jenny said after she spat some water out of her mouth.

"But Team FCSA has already won," Slate declared as he fired at Jenny and Ebony. As Jenny tried to deflect the shots, she noticed that her weapon was actually getting colder. When Slate stopped firing, she saw that he used Ice Dust bullets to freeze her weapon before he fired another Ice Dust bullet and froze her because she was still soaking wet from her duel with Layla. At the same time, Slate used more Lightning Dust bullets and shocked Ebony's Aura levels into the red.

"That's the match," Glynda stated. "I must say that all four of you were able to put up a good fight. Both teams will likely do well in the tournament. Now, for our next match..."

* * *

For the rest of the class, everyone witnessed Pyrrha Nikos take on all four members of Team CRDL without breaking a sweat. Everyone believed that she had no issues with taking part in the Vytal Festival Tournament because of that. However, during the final match of the day between Pyrrha and a Haven Academy student named Mercury Black, the latter gave up after a while. Everyone was confused by his actions because he managed to disarm Pyrrha for a moment with only his kick-based fighting style and would have likely been able to defeat her if he continued. Fragment Hunter themselves were still talking about it as they decided to hang out with Ebony and Jenny after class. "That Mercury guy was strange. He could've taken Pyrrha because she already fought against Team CRDL just before him. Even athletes get exhausted," Rebecca stated.

"Who knows? I just know that Vinyl would've likely been able to match him with their fighting styles being so similar. Heck, my little sister has kick-based style and would probably be able to outmaneuver him with some extra training," Slate commented.

"Uncle Ventus would probably beat that guy easily," Azalea said. "He's even got similar weapons to Mercury's boots."

"You said that he had talons, right? Would that mean he's even more dangerous in battle because he could probably claw somebody's eyes out," Sunset asked. Slate and Azalea just eyed Sunset because they knew Fragment Hunter spied on their first date a while ago. "I'll take that as a 'yes'," Sunset said before turning her attention to her pet gecko on her shoulder.

"You guys were pretty good in that fight," Ebony remarked. "I need to improve on dealing with trick shooters and Dust ammo."

"At least you're pretty skilled in physical combat," Slate mentioned. "I probably wouldn't have been able to beat you in a one-on-one match."

"I'm sure that with your skill in trick shots, you might have been a match for me alone," Jenny said as she made sure that her weapon was no longer frozen. "So, anyone ready for the dance this weekend," she asked as she returned her gun to an inactive form.

"Depends," Silver said with a slightly pink face as he slid closer to the blonde of Team PRDT and Celadon. "Either of you want to go out with me?"

"I thought you would've asked Yang Xiao Long," Lapis pondered out loud and with a small smirk.

"I heard that she and the rest of Team RWBY are working on the dance preparations in place of Team CFVY since their mission is taking longer than expected," Rua stated.

"At least we know it'll be fun," Vinyl remarked. "Yang's a bombshell that knows how to party and Weiss is a proper lady with her own charm and beauty. Between the two of them, they'll make the dance a perfect night for everyone."

"As long as they want to be there," Azalea muttered to herself. She soon saw Slate put his hat on her head and Sunset place a hand on her shoulder. Seeing the rest of her friends smiling in support, Azalea brightened up a bit herself.

"If those jerks from Team JADE show up, we won't let them get near you," Rua said to the Cow Faunus.

"Thanks, guys," Azalea whispered before they heard a dog barking and running toward them. "Well, that's Dante."

Soon, the large hound jumped in the air and began to fall onto Silver. "Not again," Silver muttered before the impact came and he was struggling to free himself from underneath the giant canine. "Azalea, get your dog _off of me_!"

"Aww, but he likes you," Azalea and Vixen snickered as the dog began to lick Silver's face.

As Silver kept trying to get out from underneath Dante, Slate felt something pulling at his clothes and saw Azalea's other two dogs getting his attention. Luring him away from the others while they chuckled at Silver and Dante, Diana and Drei brought Slate over to a part of the courtyard where Ivy was enjoying the peaceful afternoon. Turning toward Slate, Ivy waved to the boy and signaled for him to come closer. "Hello, Slate. I heard that you did well in your latest sparring match," Ivy said.

"Yeah. But, those two girls really gave me and Layla a run for our money," Slate replied. "Is there any reason why your dogs wanted me to come over here?"

"There actually _is_ a reason for that," Ivy said as she adjusted her blouse's collar. "Have you asked Azalea to the dance this Sunday yet?"

The question caught Slate off guard a little and he stepped backward. "WHAT!?"

"Have you asked Azalea to be your date for the Beacon Dance yet," Ivy asked once again. "It's a pretty simple question like 'Does this outfit make me look sexy' or 'Is Terracotta a terrifying-looking gentleman?' It really isn't that difficult to answer," Ivy said with a small smile on her lips.

Slate was feeling nervous about Azalea's mother asking him if he was going to take her to the dance and kept stammering. "W-w-well... I-it's just that... I... You see... T-the thing is..."

"You really do like her, don't you," Ivy guessed with a smirk.

"...A little," Slate hesitantly admitted with pink cheeks.

Ivy laughed a bit at Slate's behavior before looking him in the eye. "Slate, you should just try and ask her when you can. I'm sure that she'd be happy if you took her out again."

"Maybe you're right," Slate said as he looked over in the direction he came from and thought about Azalea.

"A mother knows quite a bit about her children," Ivy told Slate before she stood up and left with Diana. "I'll see you around." As Slate watched the Faunus woman walk off, he thought about when he could ask Azalea to the dance and headed back to join up with Fragment Hunter.

* * *

In the city, Terracotta was sitting on a sofa inside the penthouse of a hotel and spoke to the blonde teenage client who hired him. "So, how's everything for the upcoming concert?"

"It's going well, but it won't be for another few weeks," the girl said. "My manager is thinking of holding a contest for giving out backstage passes, but I want to actually give some to somebody."

"And I'm sure that I know who you have in mind," Terracotta remarked with a smile. "But after this weekend, I need to help with mission assignments for first-year Huntsmen students. They'll be shadowing me, the police, or other Huntsmen depending on the jobs they selected, so it might be difficult to be your 'bodyguard' during then," he said and air quoted 'bodyguard'.

"That's fine. I would actually want to interact with other kids my age," the teenager stated. "Too bad that my manager and chauffeur won't let me out of the hotel unless it was for some promotional event."

"You're a teenage girl. You _should_ go and have some fun," Terracotta said. "In fact, Beacon is holding a dance on Sunday night. You could sneak out and enjoy yourself there. I'm also sure that an old friend of yours would be there, 'Miss Coloratura'."

The girl smiled at the idea Terracotta was suggesting and went over to one of her hotel room's closets. "I'm going to need the right outfit!"

"Don't worry. You have until this weekend," Terracotta mentioned with a smile as he went to help the girl choose a dress for the dance.

* * *

 **And with this chapter that takes place at the same time as "Extracurricular", Fragment Hunter meet some new friends/rivals and gets ready for the upcoming dance. At the same time, Terracotta helps out the client he apparently knows and encourages her to go to the dance herself. The dance itself will take place in Chapter 20, so be ready for that by then.**

 **For the characters introduced, I'll explain their names and how they fit in the RWBY Color Naming Rule.**

 **Oren Maxwell's first name is a Hebrew name that translates into various types of trees such as ash, cedar, and pine. As for "Maxwell", I've got a theme/motif for his whole team and if you can guess it, good for you!**

 **Raduga White's first name is the Russian word for "rainbow" and there's no thinking required for his last name. Just like Maxwell, the motif for his there. You just have to think about it or you probably need to read more manga. *hint hint***

 **Ebony Rain's name is sort of obvious. As for her weapon, I got the inspiration for it after I saw the Black Panther movie in theaters. The weapon was pretty cool and I thought that it could be modified to fit into RWBY. The actual weapon name is called a "Nguni shield", so go ahead and look it up if you want.**

 **Jennifer Dawn's name was a little tricky when thinking of it to start, but I soon found out that the first name was actual Cornish for "white enchantress" or "fair one". When I came up with her character, I thought that having her as a vampire hunter-styled character would work pretty well. Her weapon was inspired by the Fangire Slayer equipment from "Kamen Rider Kiva" (which I have REALLY gotten into. It's such as great show).**

 **I'm going to write up more for the "Beacon Dance story" and after that, I'm going to try and focus on writing more for "Go Go RWBY Rangers". So, if you like that fic of mine, be on the lookout for it in the future. Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	19. In For A Pound

**WaterDragonMaverick here with the newest chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". In the last chapter, Fragment Hunter met up with a few new friendly rivals and are getting ready for the Beacon Dance. In this chapter, I'll cover some final minute things for the group when they get ready for the dance as well as show a few familiar faces from canon and earlier chapters. So, let's get to it.**

 **Prepare yourself!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own in this story are my Original Characters**

* * *

On Saturday morning, everyone at Beacon Academy was making sure that they were prepared for the dance during tomorrow night. Some students talked about going into town to pick up dresses and tuxedos, a few students talked about the setup for the ballroom that Team RWBY was currently working on, and Fragment Hunter was going over a few things themselves. While they decided to spend the morning just hanging out and playing their instruments that Vinyl bought them, they soon began to talk about a few details involving the Beacon Dance. "So, it looks like Yang managed to book a few DJs for the dance to help with the music," Vinyl remarked. "She could've asked me to help out if she remembered. We did go to Signal Academy together. I even met up with her when we first got to Beacon."

"Well, considering you hang out with us so much, she probably thought that you were busy," Lapis suggested. Vinyl thought it over and silently nodded in reply. "So, does anybody else need to get a few things for the dance later? Ivy and the Celeste sisters were kind enough to help pay for what we needed, but I know we all didn't get everyone outfits."

"I know that Rua needs something to wear," Vixen commented with a smile.

"There is _nothing_ you can do to put me in a dress," Rua exclaimed as she crossed her arms. "A skirt is one thing, but a dress is a different thing entirely. You can't do anything to get me to wear one."

"Not even this," Vixen asked with a mischievous smirk as she snapped her fingers. Everyone soon saw that Rua was now currently wearing a short red dress instead of her usual clothes. Silver, Slate, and several of the girls began to snicker at the annoyed look Rua had on her face. "Hahahaha! I love my Semblance."

"If we're making it so that we look different, I always wondered what I would look like with pink or blonde hair," Azalea said as Vixen removed the illusion on Rua.

"Well, I already know what you would look like with completely red hair thanks to seeing that memory of your aunt," Sunset mentioned. "Go ahead and try it, Vixen. Let's start with a blonde Azalea." Snapping her fingers as she used her Semblance, Vixen cast an illusion on Azalea in order to turn her regular auburn hair into a low-hanging blonde ponytail. "Okay, that works too well," Sunset remarked with a playful smile as she and the others pulled out their Scrolls to take photos of the currently blonde Azalea.

Celadon was kind enough to show Azalea's photo to her and the Faunus inspected the look for herself as Silver gave an appreciative whistle. "Wow. This is very nice. I'm wondering what I'd look like with pink hair now," Azalea said.

"One way to find out," Vixen declared as she waved a hand in front of Azalea and the illusion changed. Now instead of having a blonde ponytail, Azalea's hairstyle was now pink and slightly wavy. Her new illusionary hair reached her hips and the bangs covered a small part of her face that Sunset recognized as the same style Azalea had when she was bullied at Sanctuary Academy. "I thought that this would work. Thoughts, guys?"

"I think it suits her," Sunset and Layla said as they and the rest of Fragment Hunter took pictures of Azalea with pink hair.

"With that hair color, I think people would believe you're related to my sister," Slate commented. "It really does look nice on you, though." Azalea smiled and turned away as she began to play with her hair while the illusion was active. The girls all smirked when they saw Azalea's cheeks turning the same shade of pink as her current hairstyle. Snapping a few more pictures of the blushing Azalea, Fragment Hunter signaled for Vixen to stop her illusions.

With Azalea's hair returning to its normal reddish-brown color, everyone's attention was changed back to the topic of the dance. "We already know that Azalea's going to wear that little black dress from before," Celadon commented and caught the aforementioned girl sneaking little glances at Slate when the dress was brought up. "But who else needs their own outfit for the dance? I already have a few dresses that I had to choose between."

"I'm not wearing a dress," Vinyl said. "I'm going to talk to Yang about being a spare DJ, so I don't need anything but what I have on now."

"I'll just need a tuxedo with the right colors like the boys," Rua stated.

"I know I need a dress," Sunset remarked. "I think I'm the only girl who needs a dress that actually _wants_ to wear one." When the other girls of Fragment Hunter nodded, Sunset got up and stretched her arms. "Well, then. I say that we need to go shopping. Azalea, message your mom and we'll get going. Celadon, we need to find a boutique that has the right dress for me."

* * *

After figuring out their plans for the day, the members of Fragment Hunter split up into two groups. Sunset, Azalea, Rua, Celadon, and the boys went with Ivy, Aurora, and Nocturne to search a few boutiques for outfits while the others stayed at Beacon to help set up the ballroom for the dance. "Alright, let's go to where we first found Azalea's dress," Celadon declared as she led the way.

"Right behind you," Silver said as he followed Celadon. Soon, everyone reached the boutique and they separated to find what they needed. "Me, Rua, and Slate will check for our clothes. You girls have fun dress hunting," Silver told Sunset and the others.

"We will," Ivy replied as she waved back to Silver. When the Wolf Faunus headed off with Rua and Slate, Ivy and the others turned their attention to the numerous racks that were filled with dresses. "You know, the boutique back in Mirabelle would've been much easier to help get everyone's outfits," Ivy commented. "Then again, the owner is an old friend from before Azalea was born."

"You mean Bianca's mom," Azalea asked as she moved a few dresses aside to check for something Sunset would like.

"Yes. She would've been happy to help make some dresses for everyone. Even tuxedos for Rua and the boys," Ivy said. "After all, your father and I are some of her best customers."

"Considering your figure and Terra's size, it isn't hard to understand why," Aurora giggled.

As Ivy began to talk to Aurora and Nocturne about a few other things, Sunset's search for a dress took her farther into the store. Looking at the mannequins and racks for something that caught her eye, Sunset didn't pay attention to where she was walking and bumped into somebody. Losing her balance, Sunset fell onto her back and let out a grunt as she fell to the floor. "Oh, sorry about that," said a girl's voice. "Here, let me help you up." Sunset soon saw a hand reaching out for her to grab and accepted the outstretched hand.

When she stood up, Sunset saw that the person she bumped into was an adorable girl with short and curly orange hair that had a pink bow crookedly placed on the back. She had freckles underneath her bright green eyes, a cheerful smile on her face, and Sunset saw that a strand of the girl's hair was sticking up like an antenna. The girl was wearing an old-fashioned whitish-gray blouse, a pair of gray overalls that were designed to resemble a dress, and black collar with a matching pair of stockings that had green lines going down them. " _I wonder if she's one of Azalea's cousins? She looks like she could be,_ " Sunset thought to herself.

"Salutations," the girl greeted. "My name is Penny Polendina!"

"Sunset Blaze," Sunset greeted back. "Hey, do you know a girl by the name of Azalea Calla Holstein?"

"No. Why do you ask," Penny replied.

"It's just that you look like you could be related to her with your green eyes, freckles, and hair," Sunset explained.

"Sunset, are you over here," Azalea called out as she walked toward Sunset and Penny. "Oh, there you are. Hello," Azalea said as she found Sunset and noticed Penny.

"Azalea, this is Penny. Penny, Azalea," Sunset introduced. "You see what I mean," she whispered to Penny.

Penny stepped closer to get a better look at Azalea's appearance and started to make the Faunus girl slightly uncomfortable. Stepping back after a few seconds, Penny turned back to Sunset and spoke to her. "At first glance, it _does_ seem that we would look similar to each other. But I've never left Atlas until today. My father worries a lot about my safety."

"I know that feeling," Azalea said as she remembered all the times that Terracotta kept a close eye on her after nearly dying to a swarm of Rapier Wasps and a Grimm attack on the farm. "My dad's been trusting me about my own 'journey' after he taught me how to fight, though. But then again, you can't really forget the feeling of a 7'0" Bull Faunus full of muscles glaring down any boy that approaches you when you start 'developing' at the age of 12."

"Wait, you were already getting that kind of figure when you were 12," Sunset asked in surprise.

"I blame genetics. You've seen my mom," Azalea stated to Sunset in a deadpan tone before the two girls turned back to Penny. "Still, I know that fathers can be overprotective. At least he let you come to Vale, right?"

"He did... But because of my last few 'outings', I have to be accompanied by somebody whenever needed," Penny said as she looked behind herself.

Sunset and Azalea turned in the direction Penny was looking at to see two Atlas Soldiers standing guard as they looked around the store. While the soldiers kept an eye on their surroundings, the three girls noticed that they looked in one direction for a little longer than they should have. Looking in the same direction as the soldiers did, Azalea noticed that the military men's sights lingered on her mother, Ivy. " _Typical of whenever she's out somewhere_ ," Azalea thought to herself.

"Who's the lovely-looking Faunus woman," Penny asked as she noticed Ivy for herself before turning back to Azalea and Sunset. "Is she your sister," she asked Azalea.

"Mother, actually," Sunset answered. "Although, I'm pretty sure that Azalea would look just like her when she reaches about 20. Much to Slate's enjoyment," she said as she waggled her eyebrows to tease her friend.

"Please stop," Azalea moaned in embarrassment as her cheeks turned red. "He hasn't even asked me to the dance yet."

"You know that I can read minds and sense emotions, Azalea. He does want to ask you, but he's trying to find the right moment," Sunset told the Cow Faunus. "Try going out to lunch with him by yourselves. I'm sure he'll ask you when the rest of us are out of your hair. And if you feel like it, you could always ask him to the dance yourself."

"That's right," Penny said as she looked like she remembered something. "I still need a dress for the dance."

"Well, I still to find one myself," Sunset remarked as she turned back to Penny. "Let's find the right ones together." Penny smiled at Sunset and Azalea before she hugged the two in gratitude and newly kindled friendship. After a while of searching, Sunset and Azalea found the perfect dress for Penny and wore it to see if it fit her correctly. Azalea, Sunset, and the Atlas Soldiers chaperoning Penny all complimented her as she wore the dress. Soon, Penny changed back into her regular clothes and left with the soldiers to pay for the new article of clothing. "She's an odd girl, but I can tell she's a very nice person," Sunset stated to Azalea. "Come on, I still need a dress for myself."

* * *

After a while of searching, Sunset finally acquired the dress she felt was perfect for Sunday night and the others found proper fitting tuxedos for themselves. When Ivy and Aurora paid for the outfits, everyone started to head back to Beacon Academy except for Slate and Azalea. They said that they would catch up later after getting something to eat and went to the same restaurant that they went to on their date. "I'm really starting to love this place," Azalea said to Slate as the waitress brought her a plate of stir-fried noodles. "Reminds me of this neighboring town near Mirabelle called 'Nashihana'."

"I think we did a report on that place after the whole 'Cardin Incident'," Slate mentioned. "It's known for its local hot springs, right?"

"And _great_ food during festivals and celebrations," Azalea added before she slurped down some of her meal. After a few different discussions about stuff like musical interests outside of their own band and video games that Slate thought Azalea would like, the two students were finished with their food and were about to leave. However, Azalea noticed Slate was rubbing the back of his neck nervously and hesitantly spoke to him. "Is... something wrong?"

"No. No there isn't," Slate said before he began to ramble. "It's just... Well... the thing is..."

"Will you go to the dance with me," Slate and Azalea asked at the same time and surprised each other. "I thought you weren't going to ask," they remarked together before they beamed. "Yes, of course, I want to go with you!"

Leaving the restaurant happy, Azalea and Slate were excited for Sunday night. But just as they were leaving, Azalea thought she saw something enter a nearby alley. Running to see what it was, Azalea failed to get a good look at the thing in question. However, she believed that she caught a glimpse of a large raccoon-like tail. "Azalea, what's up," Slate asked as he had his hands ready to grab his revolvers at a moment's notice.

"It's nothing, Slate," Azalea said. "It's just... I thought I saw someone familiar..." As Slate placed a hand on Azalea's shoulder to comfort her, the two soon left the alleyway to return to Beacon Academy. Overlooking the training Huntsman and Huntress on the rooftops, a young Faunus man with a raccoon tail smirked as he pulled out a Scroll and messaged somebody about what to do on Sunday night.

"I'm going to need to get a tux," the Raccoon Faunus said to himself as he twirled his cane around idly before launching the grappling hook and swinging away.

* * *

The weekend soon continued on for everyone in the Kingdom of Vale and they began to enjoy their Sunday evening. Families were enjoying quality time with each other, businesses were closing early to rest up for another long week, and Beacon Academy's dance for the upcoming Vytal Festival was being held. All in all, everything was looking peaceful for the city as the sun began to set over the horizon. However, one teenage girl in a hotel penthouse was focused on something other than the calm night. "Okay, Miss Coloratura. With the weekend nearly finished, I suggest that we begin brainstorming ideas for getting word about your upcoming concert out," a man in a professional-looking suit said as he looked at his Scroll.

"Actually... I was thinking that we could deal with figuring out what to do tomorrow," the girl suggested as she held the robe she was currently wearing. "I'd like to get ready for bed early tonight."

"Of course, Miss Coloratura," the man replied as he closed his Scroll. "I'll let you get some rest. Just remember that Terracotta Gaia said he wouldn't likely be able to help with bodyguard detail. So, I'll send out a request for at least one Huntsman team attending Beacon Academy to come by tomorrow afternoon."

"That sounds like a good idea," 'Coloratura' said with a smile before her manager stepped out of the penthouse and closed the door. The girl soon breathed a sigh of relief as she was left on her own. "Finally. Now to _actually_ get ready." Stepping out onto the balcony of the penthouse suite, the girl looked out in the direction of Beacon Academy and had a determined look in her eyes. "Beacon, here I come," she declared before she removed the robe she wore to reveal a dress underneath. When she disrobed, 'Coloratura' was shown to have large, white feathered wings that she used to fly off of the balcony and head toward the school.

* * *

 **And with this chapter, we have something that I wanted to add for a while since planning Fragment Hunter's time at the Beacon Dance; meeting Penny Polendina! With her appearance, I wanted Fragment Hunter to befriend the girl because she deserves some more friends (and they won't learn of her robotic nature until** _ **much**_ **later). We also have Slate and Azalea finally going to the dance together, but a familiar face seems to have returned as they head off to Beacon.**

 **As for 'Coloratura', does the fact that she has wings sound familiar to anyone? It should because you're all going to see Fragment Hunter meet up with her at the dance and find out why Terracotta knows her.**

 **With the next chapter being the 20th, I wanted to do something special for it. When the story is updated again, be prepared for "Dance Dance Infiltration: Another Story" and what I want to happen at the Beacon Dance while Ruby tries to deal with Cinder and the CCT. After that chapter, I'll try and return my focus to "Go Go RWBY Rangers" before continuing with the adventures of Fragment Hunter.**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	20. Dance Dance Infiltration: Another Story

**Hello, everyone reading this! WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story" and the 20** **th** **chapter total for this story. During the last chapter, a few familiar faces showed up when Sunset and Azalea went out shopping with some of the others. After getting what they needed for Sunday evening, the Beacon Dance is now here! We'll see how Fragment Hunter enjoys their night before they begin shadowing Huntsmen on missions the next day. However, it also seems like some uninvited guests are showing up to the dance. Will this be a problem?**

 **Shall we dance?**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my Original Characters**

* * *

Sunday night came for Fragment Hunter and the group of teenagers was getting ready for the Beacon Dance. "This is going to be a fun night," Silver said as he fixed up his jacket. He, Slate, and Rua were all wearing tuxedos with either a colored trim on their jackets or a colored shirt underneath. Slate's tux had a silver trim, Slate had a viridian green shirt underneath his jacket, and Rua had a jacket that matched her hair color. "Especially since you've got a date," Silver said as he lightly elbowed Slate.

"It's not the first I've had with her," Slate reminded as he removed his hat and chose to put it back in his room. Running his hands through his hair, Slate sighed as he waited for the girls to finish getting ready. Soon, Azalea was the first to walk out of Team SAFR's dorm room in the same little black dress she wore when she went out with Slate. "H-hey, Azalea," Slate greeted as he saw the Faunus girl and noticed that she had applied makeup just like when the two went out together.

"Hi, Slate," Azalea replied as her cheeks began to turn pink. "The girls will be out in a bit, so we should probably just head out to the ballroom."

"Sounds like a good idea," Rua agreed. "Besides, I want to hear what Vinyl as for a music selection when she takes over the DJ booth."

As the four teenagers headed for the ballroom, they saw several students all gussied up in suits and dresses as they headed for the ballroom themselves. As they walked along their way, they soon saw Blake Belladonna in a purple dress walking to the dance with Sun Wukong in a tie and black jacket. "I see somebody finally managed to talk some sense into Blake about getting some sleep," Azalea remarked as she saw the two smiling as they walked past.

When they continued their way to the ballroom, the four members of Fragment Hunter noticed Oren Maxwell and Raduga White accompanying their blonde teammate, Lucy. While Lucy wore a gold-colored dress, the boys wore tuxedos in their own styles. Maxwell's tux was a typical black color and he wore gloves to conceal his robotic hand while completing the professional look, but Raduga's outfit was more of a snowy white color that matched his hair. "Hey, guys," Raduga greeted with a friendly smile. "You going by yourselves?"

"Nah, the other girls are going to meet up in a bit," Silver said before he got a message on his Scroll. "Looks like they're done getting ready and are coming here right now. We'll meet up with them. You three go on in without us." Maxwell saluted the four members of Fragment Hunter and complimented their appearances before he and his teammates entered the ballroom to be greeted by Yang Xiao Long in a white hatlerneck dress. "Man, she's gorgeous," Silver commented on Yang before returning his focus to the others.

After a minute or two of waiting, the remaining members of Fragment Hunter had arrived and began to show off their outfits. Sunset wore a short, purple and turquoise-colored dress with a black trim. Celadon wore an elegant and sparkly dress in a light emerald green that stopped just under her knees, had applied peach lip gloss for the occasion, and even wore a peach-colored necklace to go with her dress. Rebecca wore a long black dress that reached her calves, had a red sash that went from her shoulder to her hip, and the dress also had silver sparkles along the skirt. "Well? How do we look," Celadon asked as she did a few flirty poses.

"Pretty great," Silver said as he eyed the girls of Team SAFR. As he turned his head to check out the others he saw that Layla had decided to wear a red halterneck dress with matching pumps and a statement necklace instead of her bracelets, however, she still kept her headpiece and earrings on. Cereza wore a short, multicolored, holographic dress that had a motif that was similar to her moon and butterfly emblem. "So are you two," Silver remarked.

"You look so pretty, Layla," Azalea exclaimed as she hugged her friend. As the two smiled and laughed, Silver and Rua looked at what their teammates wore for the dance. Lapis wore a long mermaid-like dress that reached her ankles, was cyan in color, and had a silver scale design. Vixen wore a short, asymmetrical, satin dress that ended at her thigh on one side while the other side stopped at her knee. The reddish-orange color of Vixen's dress reminded everyone of the hair color of an old spy show's main heroine.

"Shall we go in," Cereza rhetorically asked with a smile as she adjusted her glasses.

When the group entered the ballroom, Yang greeted them happily. "Hey, guys! You all look amazing! Especially you, Azalea. I wouldn't expect you to wear something like that dress."

"Well... Let's just say that I've had a little encouragement before," Azalea replied.

"Vinyl's already helping the DJ's we already got, so she'll take over for them when they need a break," Yang mentioned. "Let's all have some fun tonight," the blonde beauty declared as she pumped a fist in the air. Fragment Hunter all agreed on that and went into the ballroom before separating to do their own thing.

* * *

As the dance got into full swing, the students and faculty all enjoyed their evening. The students and teachers all talked about a variety of things while others danced with their partners. While she was enjoying the night when with the others, Azalea was still feeling understandably nervous when the others left her side. She would've been with Slate all night, but he had to leave to when he received a call from his family and wanted to talk with them in a quieter location. As for the rest of Fragment Hunter, Azalea watched as Silver tried to flirt with every cute blonde he saw while Celadon and Vixen did the same with any boys they met. The rest of the members of her group were either dancing or hanging out with other students while she decided to wait by herself near the punch bowl when nobody was near it. Having a sip of punch for herself, Azalea didn't notice that somebody had walked up to her until they spoke. "I thought that you came with a date, Sugarcube. Why are you being a wallflower and hiding by the punch bowl?"

Turning to see the familiar voice, Azalea saw that it was her mother and that Ivy was wearing a white halterneck dress that fell down to her calves and revealed plenty of cleavage. "You're looking amazing as always, Mom," Azalea said. "But, are you trying to give everyone here a reason to take a cold shower later on purpose?"

"Peeerhaaaps," Ivy drawled before laughing to herself. "It works well with your father," the older Faunus remarked in order to mess with her daughter.

"Please don't make me ruin my dress, Mom. I like it a lot," Azalea pleaded.

"You still haven't answered my question, my little wallflower," Ivy mentioned.

"Slate's family called to talk about a few things and the others are all having fun without me. This is just too different from the festivals in Mirabelle and Nashihana," Azalea answered. "I'm just not comfortable being around everyone here because I don't know them all that well."

Ivy listened to her daughter's worries and soon hugged Azalea. "It's alright, Sugarcube. Baby steps. Just do what you feel comfortable doing," Ivy told her. "However, you could always try dancing with somebody different. Everyone here seems to be on their best behavior."

"I'm sure they would with somebody like _that_ watching over them," Azalea stated dryly as she pointed to Terracotta in his regular attire looking around at the dance as a chaperone and keeping an eye out for troublemaking students. "On the bright side, I haven't seen my old bullies around all night."

"They're probably scared of your father like they always have been," Ivy surmised. "Either way, you should try stepping out of your comfort zone just a tad. You always deal with vicious Grimm around home and during classes here, so just talking to somebody should be much easier than that." With one last piece of advice for the night, Ivy went off to stay by Terracotta's side while Azalea thought over what her mother said.

While she was lost in her thoughts, somebody else approached her and extended a hand to her. "Shall we dance, my beautiful flower," a smooth male voice asked. Looking at the newcomer, Azalea saw that he was a Raccoon Faunus that wore a blue-trimmed tuxedo with a blue shirt, had black and gray hair, and brown eyes. He looked familiar, but Azalea couldn't place where she had seen him. He did look old enough to be an older student from one of the other Academies, but Azalea wasn't sure. "Well? Would you like to," the Faunus male asked again.

"Umm... Well... I already have a date," Azalea hesitantly explained to the mysterious boy.

"It's only a dance, cutie. I'm not asking for a kiss on the lips," he stated. "No matter how beautiful they are with that color of lipstick." Azalea began to blush at the Faunus' flirting, but she heard him speak again. "Just one dance. If somebody asks to cut in, I'll let them. Is that okay?" For some reason, Azalea couldn't say no to the boy because of his polite charm and silently nodded. "Thank you, Miss. I'll be sure to keep my hands where they should be."

As the Raccoon Faunus guided Azalea to the dance floor, the boy threw a Lien card wrapped in a note toward the DJ booth with precision and skill. When the two masked DJs left to take a break, Vinyl took over and saw the card land right in front of her. Reading the note on the card, she nodded to herself and selected a song suitable for a tango. As the song was being chosen, Azalea and the Raccoon Faunus were ready to dance before somebody tapped the boy on the shoulder. "May I cut in," Sunset asked as she looked at the male in suspicion.

"I thought that I would dance with this lovely flower for a little first," the boy said as he gestured to Azalea. "But if you insist, my fiery-haired beauty." As he still held Azalea's hand, the male kissed it gently before letting her go on her way. "Enchante, gorgeous. Say hello to your lovely cousin that I saw you talking with earlier for me."

When the male switched dance partners, Sunset took him by the hand and activated her Semblance. Seeing memories of three boys growing up on the streets, she soon saw them grow up into very familiar-looking thieves before one of the memories was of the Raccoon Faunus facing off against herself. The most recent memory that Sunset managed to see was of the male she touched looking at Slate and Azalea leaving toward Beacon as he stood on a rooftop and used his cane to get to the next roof. When she stopped using her Semblance, Sunset looked the Faunus boy in the eyes just as the song began to play. As they danced together, Sunset spoke to the male about a few things. "The woman Azalea was talking to earlier was her mother, not a cousin. You understand that, _Sombra_?"

Realizing that the girl he was dancing with had figured out who he was, the Raccoon Faunus just smiled. "To be fair, she did look young for her age. Have they been mistaken for sisters before," Smoke Shadow asked and Sunset replied by nodding. "So, I take it that you were protecting your friend?"

"I saw you talking with her and I got suspicious. Sorry if I don't trust a thief like yourself," Sunset remarked as Smoke spun her during one of the dance steps. "What are you up to now?"

"Can't a guy just enjoy the sights with the Vytal Festival coming up soon," Sombra said. Sunset glared at him while he dipped her. "I swear that I'm not up to anything major. If I was, I wouldn't be here dancing with cute girls such as yourself and Azalea."

As they continued the dance, Sunset thought of what he said and she just had the feeling that he was telling the truth. In fact, Sunset felt that he _was_ being honest in the same way that she sensed the emotions of others with her Semblance. "You know, I actually believe you for some reason, Sombra," Sunset said as the two continued their graceful dance.

"I'm glad that you could understand, my wildfire," Smoke said with a smile. "So, are you still single?"

"Don't push your luck, you thief. You better be glad that the sword you stole was returned to its rightful owners," Sunset remarked.

"It wasn't really that fun going against the security in that place anyway," Smoke mentioned. "They could've used some extra equipment."

"Is the thrill of the heist all that you get out of this line of work," Sunset asked as the song was nearing its conclusion.

"Sometimes it is, sometimes it's all the coin I can get, and sometimes... it's about the pretty girls that I meet along the way," Sombra said as he ended the dance with one final spin into a dip. Everyone who watched the dance applauded at how amazing Sunset and Smoke were before he helped the girl to her feet. "I'll be seeing you when our paths cross again, my passionate flame," Smoke declared as he walked away.

Seeing the phantom thief starting to leave through the crowd, Sunset tried to chase after him. However, she soon realized that he was likely using his Semblance to phase through the crowd while she had to move the others out of her way. When she saw Smoke Shadow reach the emergency exit and no sound went off, her guess of his 'Phantasm' ability was correct. "Dammit," Sunset muttered before Slate walked in her direction.

"Yeah, I heard you, sis. Okay, bye," Slate told the person his Scroll before hanging up and pocketing the device. "Well, that's typical of my parents. At least I've had experience with this sort of thing," he said to himself. "Hey, Sunset. When did you get the flower in your hair?"

"What," Sunset asked as she looked at Slate and felt around her head to find a blue rose in her hair and one of Smoke Shadow's calling cards attached to the stem. "That sly devil," she muttered as she took the card in one hand and crushed it in her grip before placing the flower back behind her right ear.

* * *

While everyone was enjoying their night, Silver was feeling a little upset with himself as he leaned against a wall near the ballroom's upper balcony. "Why is it that I'm striking out with every blonde I meet," the Wolf Faunus asked himself.

"Perhaps you're trying too hard," a melodious female voice suggested from just out of Silver's view.

"Nah, that's not it," Silver dismissed before turning to see who spoke to him. When he saw the girl, he was speechless and couldn't stop gawking at the beauty in front of him as she stood on the balcony. She was 5'5" with a fair-skinned and fit hourglass figure that reminded Silver of Yang Xiao Long and Azalea. The girl had golden blonde hair that reached the nape of her neck, sapphire blue eyes, and was easily identifiable as a Faunus because of the feathery wings on her back. She wore a backless white halterneck dress that was the same style as Yang's, but this girl's dress had a gold trim and a blue sash around her waist similar to the dress that Azalea was wearing. To complete her look, she wore a pair of white pumps with a gold trim and blue lipstick.

"Hey, are you still here," the angelic-looking Faunus asked Silver and snapped him out of his daze.

Silver slapped himself to see if he was dreaming or not because he didn't believe that a girl like the one he was looking at was real. When he saw that he wasn't dreaming, he shook his head to clear his thoughts before he spoke. "Y-yeah! I'm still here," Silver said with slightly pink cheeks. "So, I haven't seen you around before. Where are you from?"

"Well, my parents came from Atlas, but I was born in a village called 'Mirabelle'. Ever heard of it, handsome," the girl said as she walked up to Silver.

"Y-y-yeah. A friend of mine and her parents are actually from there. They should be in the ballroom. Just look for the massive Bull Faunus that looks like he could make his shirts explode by flexing or the _really_ sexy Cow Faunus with huge, beautiful breasts. And I probably shouldn't have said that last part out loud," Silver told the girl before he realized that he said something stupid.

"Is she really that hot," the winged Faunus asked for confirmation.

"I'm pretty sure that everyone in the ballroom would describe Ivy as either a 'queen', 'goddess', or 'goddess queen' if you asked them," Silver answered.

"I'll take your word for it," the girl said with a knowing smile. "Since I don't really know my way around here like you probably do, mind being my escort?"

"S-sure! I'd be happy to," Silver replied quickly before he guided the Faunus into the ballroom. To his surprise, she held onto his arm and walked by his side. As they continued into the ballroom, they saw several couples dancing together before reaching the punch bowl just as Slate and Azalea left. "You want something to drink?"

"I'd love some punch," the winged Faunus said. Soon, Silver handed the girl her drink and they watched the dancers. "Are those two waltzing," the blonde asked as she pointed toward Ren and Nora. "Because it doesn't look like it to me."

"Hmm? Oh yeah, Nora's just like that," Silver said when he saw what his 'date' was point toward.

"Maybe I could ask the DJ to put on another kind of waltz," the girl muttered loud enough for Silver to hear.

Seeing that Vinyl was still in the DJ booth and that Slate was approaching Azalea on the dance floor, Silver thought of something. "The DJ up there is actually my friend, so I can try to get a request in for you," he told the winged girl.

"Thank you," the girl said before Silver went to talk with Vinyl.

"Hey, Vinyl," Silver called out to the blue-haired DJ. "I want to make a request for somebody," he explained before typing out what he wanted on his Scroll and showing her. As Vinyl read it, she gave a thumbs-up and prepared the next song just before the other two DJs came back to take over for Vinyl.

When Silver returned to the Faunus girl, he explained what he said to Vinyl. "Well, that's sweet of you to help your friends," the blonde commented. "Let's see how it goes." Soon, a red spotlight shined down on Slate and Azalea to everyone's surprise. While the light's appearance puzzled the two, they soon saw it was Vinyl controlling the spotlight's position and waved to them. When the music started playing, Slate took the lead and danced to the waltz with Azalea. While the song and light made everything seem magical to both the dancers and the audience, the Faunus girl was more focused on who was dancing. "Is that really her," she muttered to herself.

When the song ended, everyone applauded Slate and Azalea's dance before they left the dance floor to sit down. Azalea sighed heavily in relief because of the sudden focus on her and Slate. "I can't believe that Vinyl did that just for us," Azalea said.

"Yeah. I bet that one of the others wanted her to do that," Slate surmised.

"I bet. So, what did your family call you about," Azalea asked.

"Turns out they're moving... again," Slate explained. "It's nothing new to me because we kept moving around the desert when I was younger, but now they're actually leaving the Vacuo territories for good."

"Really? Where are they going," Azalea asked in curiosity.

"I don't know. My sister just said that she'd be in Vale by the time of the Vytal Festival, so I'm at least going to meet up with her then," Slate mentioned. "They'll probably have more information to share with me by then."

"Wow... I know that coming here was tough enough for me," Azalea said. "I didn't have anybody, but your sister at least has you."

"On the bright side, you'll get to meet her sooner than I thought," Slate remarked with a smile.

As Slate and Azalea smiled at each other, somebody caught their attention when they approached them. "Azalea?! Is that really you," the winged Faunus girl that accompanied Silver called out to Azalea.

"Bianca!? Are you really here," Azalea asked in reply.

"Yeah, it's me," the girl exclaimed before hugging Azalea tightly and kissing her cheek to leave a blue lipstick mark. When the two separated, the boys were gawking at what they saw. "It's been months! I can't believe this is really you," the blonde said while looking at Azalea in her dress. "You really fill that dress out well. You've got the perfect body for it."

"Can somebody please explain what's going on here," Sunset asked as she and the rest of Fragment Hunter approached Slate and the three Faunus.

* * *

When all twelve members of Fragment Hunter were on the balcony, Azalea spoke to her friends as she wiped away the lipstick on her cheek. "Everyone, I want you to meet Bianca Coloratura. She's my childhood friend from Mirabelle. She also had a crush on me when we were 15."

"Guilty as charged," Bianca said. "Just so you know, I _am_ bisexual. I'm interested both boys and girls," she stated and gave a flirty wink. Upon hearing Bianca, Vinyl and Silver looked at her before turning back each other. Both of them tried to get closer to Bianca, but they kept shoving each other out of the way while doing so.

"Okay, I remember seeing you in Azalea's memories when I used my Semblance on her, but that isn't the _only_ thing I remember you from," Sunset declared. "You seem so familiar."

Bianca only giggled and decided to take the conversation back down to the ballroom. "I could tell you later, but I just want to enjoy the night with my best friend and get to know her new friends," Bianca said as she hugged Azalea. "Especially the cool blue-haired chick and the handsome Wolf Faunus. Vinyl and Silver, was it?"

"SHE'S MINE! I GET TO TRY AND ASK HER OUT FIRST," Vinyl and Silver both shouted as they attempted to shove each other out of the way.

"I'd say that we just leave them be, Darling," Celadon suggested as she turned to Bianca. "Still, where have we heard of you besides from Azalea?"

"The better question is, 'Why is that guy in a dress'," Bianca said between giggles as she pointed down to the dance floor. Confused by what she meant, the members of Fragment Hunter all looked down at the front entrance to the ballroom to find that Jaune Arc, who had come to the dance in a tuxedo earlier, was now wearing a strapless white dress with a blue ribbon. Upon seeing the boy, Fragment Hunter began to laugh like the rest of the students down on the dance floor as Jaune made his way toward his teammate, Pyrrha Nikos.

"Wh-what?! Why," Lapis exclaimed as she laughed out loud.

"I don- I don't... I don't know," Celadon said between her snickering.

"Did hehehehehe lose a bet or something," Slate asked as he kept laughing.

"I could find out if you guys want," Sunset managed to say when she stopped laughing so much.

Focusing her Semblance in Jaune's direction, Sunset was able to hear his current thoughts. " _I can't believe that Pyrrha didn't have a date because everyone thought she was too good for them. Well, I said that if she didn't go with anybody, I would wear a dress. And an Arc never goes back on his word._ "

"Okay. Looks like he made a promise to Pyrrha that if she didn't have a date, he'd wear a dress," Sunset told everyone.

"Oh my god, that's just too funny and so sweet at the same time," Bianca said. "Come on. Let's go see her reaction to this." When the teenagers reached the main floor of the ballroom, they watched as Pyrrha laughed at Jaune keeping his promise to her before he took her by the hand to dance. Soon, Nora and Ren joined them as a song familiar to most of Fragment Hunter played. "But baby, it's time to make up your mind~ I think that tonight is when our stars align~ Honey, it's time to leave the doubt behind~ Take my hand 'cause you and I are gonna shine~" To most of their surprise and shock, Bianca sang to the song perfectly and Fragment Hunter realized where they had heard of Bianca Coloratura before.

"How come I didn't figure it out earlier," Sunset exclaimed. "We cover so many of your songs during band practice!"

"So, you finally figured it out," Bianca asked the others with a knowing smile.

"Of course! You're the Angel of Anima," Slate practically shouted. "My little sister is such a huge fan of yours, Bianca!"

"Wait, so you actually made it big," Azalea asked her friend.

"Yup. A while after you left for Beacon, I went to Atlas to make it as a singer and it worked out really well," Bianca explained. "I've actually got a show before the Vytal Festival. If you guys want to ever stop by, take this and it'll let you talk to my manager." Reaching into her dress, Bianca pulled out a card that had an emblem depicting an angel-winged heart with a musical note in the center and gave it to Silver. "I need to get going so he doesn't know I snuck out to come here, but I hope that I can see you all again. Especially you, Silver," Bianca said to Fragment Hunter before whispering the last part to the Wolf Faunus and kissing his cheek to leave a blue lipstick mark on his face. "See you later, Fragment Hunter."

While Bianca left for the balcony to fly back to her penthouse, everyone either said their farewells to Bianca or watched Silver spout gibberish and wobble around like a drunken fool as he held onto the card Bianca gave him. "At least he's doing better than Slate did when Azalea did that to him," Rua commented with a smirk. At Rua's mention of that night, Azalea and Slate briefly looked at each other before blushing deeply at the memory.

"Come on, everybody! The night's still young and it isn't even midnight yet," Celadon reminded. "Let's enjoy ourselves before we start shadowing Huntsmen on Monday." At the girl's declaration, the rest of Fragment Hunter went to dance and talk the night away after moving Silver to a place where he could lie down. The evening went on and everyone enjoyed their time without any worries, but that would soon change.

* * *

 **And with this chapter done, we are now formally introduced to Azalea's childhood friend and successful singer, Bianca Coloratura. If you want some extra information about her, here's what I can share now. I wanted to make her a singer character that could be voiced by Casey Lee Williams, the girl who tends to sing the songs in the RWBY Soundtracks that have female vocals, which would be the songs that Bianca is known for in the setting (especially with "This Will Be The Day" in the first episode playing on Ruby's headphones and Nora having "Shine" on her Scroll during Volume 5). She's specifically a Dove Faunus if you wanted to know that detail. And this isn't going to be the last we see of Bianca.**

 **Aside from her, we also have an appearance by the first Original Character Antagonist of the story, "Sombra" Smoke Shadow, the Phantom Thief. I thought that with the Beacon Dance happening and his inspiration of Sly Cooper infiltrating a dance party in the second game, he could flirt with the two rookie Huntresses that caught his attention before dancing a tango with them. For his dance with Sunset, the music would be from "Sly 2: Band of Thieves" during the second level's heist where Sly Cooper dances with Carmelita Fox as a distraction while the choreography is similar to that minigame/scene.**

 **For the waltz between Slate and Azalea under the red spotlight, I want you to listen to the "Blood Moon Waltz" from "Star Vs The Forces of Evil" for the mood. I love that song and thought it would work with any of my Original Character couples.**

 **I hope that you enjoyed the chapter because after I complete a few updates for "Go Go RWBY Rangers", I'm going to get into Fragment Hunter dealing with their first shadowing assignments as well as their involvement during "Breach".**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	21. Orientation

**Hey, readers. WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". After the Beacon Dance and meeting one of Azalea's only friends from Mirabelle, Fragment Hunter is getting ready for their first missions by shadowing Huntsmen! Who are they going to meet? What missions will they take? Will they do well on the jobs they go on? Find out all that and more during the next few chapters of Sideline!**

 **Mission Start!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters seen in this story**

* * *

The Beacon Dance was a great experience for all of Fragment Hunter, but some enjoyed the night a little more than others and were still talking about it during breakfast on Monday morning. "She was just so beautiful," Silver said with a look on his face that screamed 'hopelessly attracted to someone'. "Azalea, you've got to tell me more about Bianca! Please," the Wolf Faunus exclaimed as he grabbed Azalea by her sweater and fell to his knees like he was begging.

"Down, boy," Vinyl laconically stated as she separated Azalea and Silver.

"Thanks, Vinyl," Azalea said and got a thumbs-up from Vinyl as a reply. "Silver, I don't think that you should ask me for what I know about Bianca," the Cow Faunus remarked as Silver sat back in his seat and scarfed down some bacon. "You should just ask her yourself if we see her again."

"She did give you that card," Rebecca reminded. Silver remembered and pulled out the card that Bianca Coloratura gave him to look at the emblem that showed an angel-winged heart with a musical note in the center. "If she's an important singer, then she might need bodyguards," Rebecca noted.

"Especially with what we have later today," Sunset mentioned as she held Phoenix in her hand. "Shadowing Huntsmen and Huntresses as we take on missions of our own."

"Yeah, you're right," Silver agreed. "We just need to find the right job."

"That's the spirit," a new male voice exclaimed in excitement. Fragment Hunter all looked at the newcomer to see he was one of the transfer students. He was 6'3" with a lean and muscular fair-skinned build, cyan blue eyes, and spiky brown hair. He wore what could be best described as a punk's version of a school uniform with armor added on. The 'uniform' consisted of a red t-shirt, a loose black jacket that only reached to his abs, and a pair of black pants that had small tears in them. He also had ivory-colored armor on the jacket's sleeves and back, a pair of metal plated combat boots, and a chain as a belt with a lock as a belt buckle. The lock was in the shape of a beast's head surrounded by what looked like spikes or claws. "Yo! Name's Percival Ivory of Team PRDT. Nice to meet you guys," he introduced himself.

"Ebony and Jenny's teammate," Lapis asked as she and the others took notice of Percival's appearance and how it contrasted his apparent friendly personality.

"Yup! I'm the leader of the team," Percival explained with a happy grin.

"You don't seem like the leader type," Rua commented.

"I'm not the smartest when it comes to school work, but fighting _is_ something I'm good at," Percival stated. "Helps that I have natural weapons to defend myself with," he added as he extended claws from his hands and revealed himself as a Faunus to Fragment Hunter.

"Cool," Vinyl voiced as she saw Percival's claws.

"So, what? Are you a big cat of some kind," Sunset inquired about Percival's Faunus heritage.

"Yup. Although, I forget which one specifically at times," Percival answered. "Anyways, I remember seeing you three at the dance and catching everyone's attention," he said to Slate, Azalea, and Sunset. While Azalea blushed at the memories of her waltz with Slate, Percival turned to Sunset again. "So, who was the Raccoon Faunus you were dancing with? I haven't seen him around Beacon before."

"He's... somebody we encountered a while before the other three Academies started showing up," Sunset explained when she found the right words.

"Man, I thought that I could have made friends with him," Percival complained. "Ah well, at least I can buddies with you guys," he said as he held out his hand to Fragment Hunter. "What do you say?"

The twelve teenagers looked at Percival before turning back to each other. "Well? How about it," Silver asked. As several members of the group thought it over, Azalea remembered what her mother said at the dance last night about talking to new people.

Standing up, Azalea approached Percival and took his hand. "Okay. We should be friends," Azalea agreed. The Faunus from Vacuo smiled as he shook Azalea's hand before readjusting his grip, which Azalea imitated before bumping fists with him, tapping their fists from top to bottom, fist bumping again, and ending the unique handshake with a high-five.

"Alright! That mean the rest of you are with her, too," Percival asked the rest of Fragment Hunter. The teenagers nodded and several of them performed the same 'secret handshake' that Percival did with Azalea. "Sweet! Now, let's make sure to give it our all during missions later," he declared before heading off to join up with his team.

"He's friendly," Sunset remarked. "But, he's right. We should get ready for later today."

* * *

Soon, Fragment Hunter was playing music to pass the time and enjoy themselves when they heard Glynda Goodwitch on the intercom. "Would all first-year students please report to the amphitheater?"

"Well, let's get going," Sunset said as she put her guitar down and lead the group of twelve to their destination. As they headed outside, Fragment Hunter soon saw Ivy Dahlia Holstein with the Dante, Diana, and Drei. The dogs soon saw the teenagers walking by and soon circled them while wagging their tails. "It's nice to see you guys, too," Sunset said as she scratched Diana's ears before continuing toward the amphitheater.

When the students soon approached the amphitheater, the dogs waited outside with Ivy while Fragment Hunter entered the building. Eventually, they saw Team RWBY enter and watched Ruby place a large backpack with the other luggage that students brought with them. Sunset was a little suspicious about what was in it, but Professor Goodwitch caught everyone's attention and asked them to be quiet. "Professor Ozpin would like to share a few words before we begin," Glynda said before stepping aside and letting the Headmaster of Beacon Academy speak.

"Today we stand together, united. Mistral. Atlas. Vacuo. Vale. The four Kingdoms of Remnant," Ozpin began. As he said this, Fragment Hunter looked around to see that Team PRDT and Team GLOW wasn't around. They could only guess that they were at least second-year teams like Team CFVY. The only team they did see that they recognized was Team JADE of Haven Academy in Mistral and everyone but Azalea glared at them before Ozpin continued speaking. "On this day, nearly eighty years ago, the largest war I recorded history came to an end. It was a war of ignorance, of greed, and of oppression. A war that was about much more than where borders fell or who traded with whom, but about the very idea of individualism itself," Ozpin said as he reminded everyone in attendance about the Great War. "We fought for countless reasons, one of which being the destruction of all forms of art and self-expression. And as you are well aware, that was something many could not stand for. As a result, those who opposed this tyranny began naming their children after one of the core aspects of art itself: color. It was their way to demonstrate that not only would they refuse to tolerate this oppression, but neither were the generations to come. And it was a trend held to this very day," Ozpin stated.

"We encourage individuality, expressionism, and unity through diversity. As I have said, we stand together, united. But this bond cannot exist without effort. Which is why today, while the rest of the world celebrates peace, Huntsmen and Huntresses will work to uphold it," Ozpin continued and reached the main point of why the freshmen students from the Academies were gathered. "As first-year students, you will be tasked with shadowing a professional Huntsman or Huntress on a mission. Some of you may be taken outside of the Kingdom for several days. Others may work within the walls for the rest of the week. But no matter the path you choose, remember to be safe, remember your training, and remember to do your very best," Ozpin stated before stepping away.

As the freshmen all began to move around to talk about what missions they would select or went to choose their jobs ASAP, Fragment Hunter stepped outside to talk with each other and let the crowds fade away from the mission boards. "So, what are we going to pick," Celadon asked as she fixed her hair.

"Don't know. But we'll have to select between what's available," Layla said. "Hey, Lea? You know what your dad's doing for this?"

"No. He could be assigned to some other team if we don't meet up with him later," Azalea answered.

"Well, we should just relax for a while and wait to decide on a mission in a few minutes when the crowds finish choosing," Cereza advised as she pulled out a lollipop from her jacket pocket.

"There's Search and Rescue, Search and Destroy, Perimeter Defense, Village Security, Bounty, and Escort missions to choose from. But that's just off the top of my head," Lapis mentioned. "If we wanted to meet with Bianca, we might have to look at details for Escort missions or something else."

After a while of waiting, Fragment Hunter went into the amphitheater again to see that the crowds have died down and that Ozpin finished talking with Team RWBY. The three teams soon went to check the mission boards and saw a few options for what they could do. "Search and Rescue in the northeast, Escort mission in the south, Bounty in the city itself. Man, so many choices that haven't been taken yet," Slate said as he looked at the holographic displays.

"Here's something," Rebecca said as she looked at the screen to her left and searched for more details. "Hmm... It says it's a bodyguarding mission that requires one to three Huntsmen teams. Must be important if they need that much security."

"Or they're paranoid," Rua remarked as she crossed her arms.

"Well, let's try it," Slate said as he stepped up to the display and typed in the team names of Fragment Hunter's members. "SLVR, FCSA, SAFR... Alright! We're going to check it out in a little bit. We just need to meet up with our Huntsman mentor," Slate told the others.

"Did you use your Semblance to make sure we could get a mission together," Azalea asked her teammate with a coy smile on her face.

"...Maybe," Slate answered as he scratched his cheek.

"Come on, you lovebirds," Sunset said as she walked toward the exit. "We should find the Huntsman we're shadowing." As Azalea and Slate blushed at Sunset calling them 'lovebirds', the members of Fragment Hunter headed off to meet up with the Huntsman they were meeting in the city of Vale. As they headed off, Dante saw them leaving and decided to follow them.

* * *

As Fragment Hunter made their way to the city, they saw that Team CFVY returned after their unexpectedly long mission. Eventually, they saw that they were meeting up with their Huntsman and possibly client at a hotel. "You think this is it," Layla asked as she looked up at the building.

"Probably," Vinyl said as she put her headphones around her neck.

"Let's find out," Silver said as he walked into the building and soon saw Terracotta Gaia in the lobby. "Yup, it's where our mission is."

"Hi, Dad," Azalea called out as she waved to her father.

Terracotta smiled and waved back as he approached the three teams. "So, your first mission is here with me? Makes sense," the Bull Faunus stated. "Come on, we need to head to Electric Rhapsody. Our client is waiting for us there."

As the thirteen warriors made their way to the music shop that Vinyl knew, Dante was still following them quietly. When Terracotta and Fragment Hunter arrived at their destination, they saw that there was a standee of Bianca Coloratura in a dress similar to what she wore to the Beacon Dance last night. Silver, Vinyl, and Azalea silently celebrated as they got another chance to talk with Bianca again, but calmed themselves down as they entered the store. A catchy pop song by Bianca called 'Neon' was playing in the store as Fragment Hunter approached the crowd of fans that waited in line for Bianca to sign autographs. "One at a time, everyone. I can only sign so much stuff," Bianca said as she sat at a table with a few stacks of CDs and merchandise by her sides. The Dove Faunus was wearing a more casual outfit of a sleeveless white sweater with an opening in the chest to reveal her cleavage, a thigh-length black skirt, and baby blue short heels with winged bows. Her skirt also had a gold-colored angel-winged heart with a musical note in the center on the hip and Bianca wore pink lipstick.

Soon, Bianca's manager saw Terracotta and hung up his Scroll. "Ah, Mister Gaia. You could make it after all," the manager greeted. "I take it that you've brought the Huntsman teams to help?"

"Hunt _ress_ mostly," Celadon said as she spoke to Bianca's manager.

"Either way, we need all the help we can get with the next few days being so busy," the manager said. "The autographs here, the setups for the concert a week before the Vytal Festival, meeting up with the band we've hired, a charity meeting at a community center, and a new song that needs recording. Plus, some fans can get obsessive, so I'm being cautious about how much security Miss Coloratura has."

"Properly paranoid is more like it," Sunset commented as she saw one fan drop a pile of CDs, posters, and even a t-shirt or two on the table Bianca was at while a few fans were starting to get into a catfight over who was next up to get an autograph.

"Okay, break it up, girls," Silver said as he separated the girls before they attempted to claw each other's eyes out. "Now, the one with the lesser number of items should go first, that way it gets over quickly and the other gets their own autograph. Got it," Silver told the girls. Listening to the Wolf Faunus, the girls calmed down and got back in line.

Bianca was impressed by this and smiled to herself as she looked at Silver. Azalea soon sat down next to the girl and started to talk with her childhood friend. "So, is it like this all the time," Azalea asked.

"Not all the time," Bianca explained. "Mostly it was just singing in small venues and working my way up. When I met my manager, Kurenai, he promised to help me release some songs and help me become a great singer."

"And you trusted him," Azalea asked cautiously.

"Well, I _was_ a little skeptical until I met Nathan Stark and he gave his opinion about Kurenai's employer who taught him everything," Bianca said to Azalea as she signed a poster for a fan. "Kurenai's boss was an honest man who made sure that Kurenai understood what he was doing as a manager and talent scout. And whenever Kurenai's first attempts to help me on my path to becoming a performer began to sputter out, he was always able to find a way to come back and send me on up."

"Wow, he sounds like a good guy," Azalea remarked as she looked at Kurenai and Terracotta talking about what to do with the schedule for the next few days.

"Yeah, but most of what I did to get where I am today in my career was based on my choices. You could do the same with how you go on your journey," Bianca said. "If you want to become successful despite what negative things people say about you, keep up your spirits be remembering something positive and push on through. When I was feeling doubtful about myself, I always remembered what you and our families said about how great I sang in Mirabelle."

"Really," Azalea asked in surprise.

"Yeah. If I never met you, I don't know where I'd be in the world of music," Bianca stated. Soon, the singer saw somebody grab a new CD from the table and looked up to see it was Slate Quartz. "So, who should I make this one out to, cowboy," Bianca asked with a smile.

"Can you address it to 'Pinkamena Momo Quartz'? Or just 'Pinkie'? It's for my little sister," Slate replied.

"Alright," Bianca agreed before signing the CD. "Okay. 'To Pinkie, this will be the day you were waiting for. Bianca Coloratura'. There you go," Bianca said as she gave Slate the CD for his sister.

"Thanks, she's going to love this," Slate said as he put some Lien into the payment box on the table for purchasing the CD. Looking around the shop, Slate and the rest of Fragment Hunter saw that nobody else was around. "Is that it for now," Slate asked Kurenai.

"Just about for here. We've got one more stop for the day and we're returning to the hotel for the night," the manager told everyone.

"Alright! Slumber party when we get back," Bianca declared as she pumped a fist into the air.

* * *

 **And with this chapter, we've met with a new friend, heard Ozpin's speech, and Fragment Hunter has started their first mission. I'll continue more of this in a bit, so keep an eye out for what happens next because at the end of the next chapter, I've got something important planned.**

 **Hope that you liked the appearance of Percival Ivory and we'll meet the last member of Team PRDT eventually. Just give me time.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick out!**


	22. Girls Just Want To Have Fun

**Hi, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here with the next part of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Fragment Hunter started their shadowing by helping Terracotta protect Azalea's childhood friend and rising pop star, Bianca Coloratura. After meeting up at the music store for her to sign autographs, we're now going to have a little more content for this chapter to make up for the lack of action scenes in a few of the other chapters before.**

 **Let's go!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters featured in this story**

* * *

After leaving Electric Rhapsody, Fragment Hunter and Terracotta continued their mission of being Bianca Coloratura's bodyguards/entourage. They had to head off to a local recording studio for Bianca to do work on a new song for her next single. "You have _no_ idea how great it feels to be with people the same age as me and _not_ have them screaming like crazed fans of my music or looks," Bianca said as she walked alongside Azalea and Celadon.

"If that line at Electric Rhapsody was any indication, you're doing well," Celadon commented.

"Yeah. I'm amazed at how well you're liked here," Azalea remarked.

"It helps that I've released some of my songs online and into music stores across Remnant. Plus, I've had several appearances in magazines over the last few weeks," Bianca mentioned. "Most of them in outfits I've made or in swimsuits."

"You make your own clothes," Celadon asked in curiosity as Cereza and Vinyl walked up to them.

"When you're growing up with a seamstress for a mother, you tend to gain interest and knowledge," Bianca replied. "I even made that dress I wore to the dance last night," she whispered so that her manager, Kurenai, didn't hear.

Celadon and Cereza were impressed that Bianca made the outfit that she wore when they first met her, but Azalea just smiled because she knew Bianca tended to make her own outfits. As the five girls kept talking about a few things, they fell behind the others and accidentally made a wrong turn. When they continued along their way, they were too wrapped up in their conversation to immediately notice where they were until Vinyl caught everyone's attention. "Guys, we made a wrong turn," Vinyl stated.

The girls looked around to see that they were in a run-down section of Vale that was a few blocks away from their destination. "We should head back to the others," Azalea suggested as she pulled out her Scroll to contact her father. "Hey, Dad? I think we made a wrong turn. We're just a few blocks away from the studio we were supposed to go to, so we'll meet you halfway there. Don't worry, Bianca's okay. Alright, see you back at the corner we turned at."

After hanging up her Scroll, Azalea noticed that several young males were staring at her and the other girls. Azalea timidly stepped back toward Bianca as she covered her chest with her arms. Celadon, Cereza, and Vinyl were surrounding the two Faunus girls as they glared at the apparent gang members. "What do we have here," one thug with a bandana said as he approached the five girls. "Looks like some girls who lost their way."

"Yeah, nobody like them ever comes here on purpose," a second thug with a denim jacket agreed he and the other males eyed each of the girls. "Never seen women like them before," he told the gang members with a lecherous grin that creeped out Azalea.

"Maybe that's because you repel any _sane_ woman who comes within a few meters of your presence," Cereza retorted.

"Why, you," the jacket-clad thug exclaimed before a third man approached him and the bandana-wearing male.

This third man was wearing a gold chain that seemed to say that he was the leader. "I take it that you don't read enough magazines," he said to his subordinates. "That short-haired blonde next to the Dairy Cow is Bianca Coloratura." Hearing them call Azalea a 'Dairy Cow' and refer to Bianca by name had the others react by getting into defensive stances. "We can hold her the pop star for ransom," the gang leader told his lackeys.

"I don't think you will," Celadon said to the leader as she got into a martial arts stance. "Even a beautiful rose has thorns."

"And what exactly does that mean," the bandana-wearing thug said as he approached Celadon.

"She means this," Bianca exclaimed as she walked up to the male and stomped on his foot. As he screamed in pain, Bianca threw a palm strike to his chin and made him bite his tongue. With a swift punch to the stomach to follow up, Bianca then ended her attack by kicking the goon in the groin and throwing him to the pavement. Everyone but Azalea was gawking at how Bianca dealt with the first thug before the leader ordered the other members of the gang to attack.

"Get them," he yelled before pulling out a gun and fired at the girls. Just as he pulled the trigger, Cereza used her Time Mirage to counter and move the bullets out of the way. When time began to flow normally, some of the gang members fell over from bullet wounds while Cereza began to fight against the gang leader. Throwing a punch at Cereza, the boss was surprised to see her deflect his attack before following up with several kicks and a punch to the stomach.

Celadon used her martial arts skills to easily fend off the street punks by sending each flying with one strike. As one thug snuck up on her to deliver a punch, Celadon focused her Aura and Semblance to her palm just as she caught the fist coming at her. The thug recoiled in pain and he saw that Celadon's hand had become covered in a gem-like armor before she backhanded him to the ground with it. "You ruffians really have this coming to you," Celadon said before her gem-armored hand faded away and was replaced with several jewel-like projectiles that launched forward to strike some of the thugs that were charging at her again with knives.

After Celadon's shots either knocked the armed punks back again or disarmed them, Vinyl began to attack them as she danced around the streets and kicked at her opponents. Avoiding attacks easily, Vinyl countered each thug that attacked her with kicks to their heads or using her Semblance to blast her enemies away with energy projectiles. When one of the bigger thugs grabbed at Vinyl's leg when she tried to kick him, the Huntress-in-training used her other leg and prepared to kick him again. The goon was about ready to withstand the kick when he saw Vinyl's foot begin to glow and she fired an energy shot into his face. The blast didn't deal major damage to the mook, but did knock him out cold and release Vinyl. The blue-haired girl looked at her legs and was pleasantly surprised by what she saw before returning to the battle.

While most of the thugs were fighting Celadon, Cereza, and Vinyl, the thug that called Azalea 'Dairy Cow' managed to sneak up on Bianca. "You're not going anywhere, Angel," he said before he felt something on his shoulder. "Huh?"

Turning around, the street punk saw Azalea grabbing his shoulder and throw a punch at his face. Azalea managed to hit the guy so hard, he was sent flying into five more thugs that were heading right for Celadon. When two other gangbangers ran toward Azalea and Bianca, the former grabbed the first one by the arm and threw him into his ally with ease. When they picked themselves up, Azalea pulled out her Multi-Action Dust Baton and set it to use Ice Dust. Swinging the weapon into each thug that approached her, Azalea's strikes sent them flying and covered their limbs in ice. "Girls, get around me," Azalea called out to her friends. When they regrouped, Azalea whispered, "Cover your eyes." As the girls did, the Faunus girl used her Semblance in the same way that she did when she fought against Tremor and unleashed a blinding light that disoriented the gangbangers like a flash bomb.

When the thugs were distracted, Bianca and her Huntress bodyguards ran off to meet back up with Terracotta and the rest of Fragment Hunter. "Since when could you do that, Azalea," Bianca asked when she saw her friend's use of her Semblance.

"I'll tell you later tonight," Azalea said as she and the others kept running. The street punks saw which way the girls ran off to and began to chase after them.

"These boys aren't quitting," Celadon said as she looked behind the group.

"They will soon enough," Cereza told the girls as they approached where they got separated from Terracotta and Fragment Hunter. Seeing the enormous Bull Faunus in front of them, the girls all got behind the Huntsman just in time for the gangbangers to see who they were charging toward. One look from Terracotta and the sight of his hand reaching for his claymore had the thugs running away in the other direction.

"Thanks, Dad," Azalea told her father as she hugged him.

"At least, you were taking your job seriously," Terracotta replied as he saw Kurenai sigh in relief when Bianca explained what happened. "Come on. We still have stuff to do this evening."

* * *

The rest of the evening went well for the large group as Fragment Hunter got to hang out at a recording studio with Bianca and the even played a few covers of her music to pass the time before they got a sneak peek at her new single, 'Bmblb'. After Fragment Hunter had to step back and let Bianca record the song, they were all amazed to hear her sing and they were captivated by her voice. Everyone could swear that Silver was only partially listening to the song as he continued to look at Bianca as she got into the song. The first take wasn't perfect, so they had to keep trying again until it was finished for the day.

"Alright, that was pretty great, Bianca," Kurenai said as he gave his client a bottle of water. "Now tomorrow, we'll need to meet up with the band I've hired at the concert's venue and there's that community center charity event with the local children. Got a busy day then, so just go ahead and relax for tonight," he told the idol.

"Thanks, Kurenai," Bianca said as she finished downing the bottle's contents. "Now we can have that slumber party," she exclaimed and faced Azalea. All of Fragment Hunter cheered at the thought of spending the night in a hotel's penthouse, but Bianca gave a knowing look to Silver and Slate. "Sorry, boys. But there are more girls here than boys, so you're going to have to spend the night away from the penthouse," the Dove Faunus said to the two males of the group. "No matter how much me and Azalea want you there," she added in a whisper so only they heard her.

Slate and Silver looked disappointed before they shrugged and decided to figure out what to do for the night while everyone headed off to the hotel Bianca was staying at. When they reached the building, Bianca and Kurenai told the staff that the members of Fragment Hunter were with them and Terracotta, so they were given their own keys for the night. The girls were excited for the night and immediately went to the penthouse while Terracotta and the boys decided to stay in the Huntsman's room to play cards most of the night.

As for the girls, they immediately went to the penthouse suite to get changed for the night. After changing, Bianca ordered room service for everyone before they started talking about some of the Huntress students' days at Beacon. "And as she was fighting against that King Taijitu, Azalea threw a boulder into its mouth and impaled it with a giant rock spike," Layla excited said as she told Bianca about the initiation test at Beacon. "After it was pinned down, me and Slate shot its head off while Team SAFR dealt with the other one."

"Man, that sounds awesome," Bianca, now wearing a grayish-colored babydoll, voiced as she placed her drink down. "What about Azalea being a living flash bomb? When did that happen?"

"Now that happened when we were dealing with a thief that had kidnapped Azalea," Cereza stated before Azalea clarified something.

"I wasn't kidnapped. I was knocked out by a rock falling on my head and they brought me to their hideout because Tremor didn't like the idea of anybody getting hurt when he wasn't intending to fight them," Azalea said. "He _did_ get to have a fight with me later though when the others tried to rescue me."

"So, what happened," Bianca asked.

"After we reached the old factory that Azalea was taken to, I had to fight the guy who knocked out Azalea with Silver fighting with me," Rua said as she adjusted her t-shirt and boyshorts. "He was a tough opponent that had me and Silver on the ropes until Azalea showed up and straight up got into a boxing match with him! They traded blow after blow until he knocked Azalea to the ground, but she started to shine like a lighthouse when she got back up."

"With Tremor distracted, I managed to until I managed to break his Aura and knock him out cold," Azalea explained. "Now I can use my Semblance for more than just hiding," she said as she pointed her hand toward a darker corner of the penthouse and used her Semblance in a more focused manner. Now, Azalea's hand was shining like a flashlight and it illuminated the corner she pointed at. "I bet that I could use it with Dust from my weapon for a number of different ways."

"Oh, I'd _love_ to see that in the Vytal Festival when you fight," Bianca said. "What else happened in that factory if all of you went there," the Faunus idol asked and was told about everything that happened with Smoke Shadow and his team. After talking about the thieves that escaped, the girls of Fragment Hunter moved onto more recent developments such as Team JADE and the lesson on Pendras. "Wow. You've been through a lot before even meeting back up with those bullies," she said as she looked at Azalea.

"Yeah, she has," Sunset remarked.

"In any case, let's move onto some other topic," Celadon said as she stood up and smoothed out her red nightgown. "How about we do something together?"

"Like what? Pranking the guys," Rua asked sarcastically. Hearing the idea of pulling a joke on the boys, Vixen, who was wearing a pair of yukata-styled pajamas like Blake Belladonna, perked up before a glare from Cereza shot down the idea.

"I was thinking something more along the lines of a movie," Celadon replied.

Hearing the idea, Rebecca, who was wearing her own style of yukata-like pajamas, grabbed the remote and tossed it over to the others. Lapis was able to catch it as she jumped up, but had to fix her tank top and shorts when they fell slightly during her grab. "So, any suggestions? Because I don't think that new Spruce Willis movie is on demand yet," Lapis asked.

"My suite, my choice," Bianca said as she grabbed the remote and chose a something to watch.

* * *

After enjoying the film that Bianca chose, most of the girls of Fragment Hunter were all asleep on the penthouse floor. As they slumbered, Sunset rolled around in her sleep as if she was dreaming. She soon opened her eyes to see that she was no longer in the hotel's penthouse, but that she was now in a peaceful forest with flowers blooming around her. "This is beautiful," Sunset said to herself as she began to explore the area. As she walked along the path, the sky turned pink and clouds appeared to make it rain soap. "Okay, this has got to be a dream," Sunset remarked as she soon saw her pet gecko command an army of mice into bringing him a Rapier Wasp nest made out of cherry gelatin. "I wonder what else there is," she asked herself as she continued on her way until seeing a trapdoor just suspended in the air above her.

Climbing the trees nearby to reach the door, Sunset soon opened it and crawled through the entry. When she got her legs through, she began to fall until she was suspended upside-down and looked around to see a starry river with a walkway made of stained glass. Stepping onto the glass panels, Sunset heard a musical note play as he foot made contact with each of the colorful platforms. Smiling in amusement after stepping on a few more, Sunset did a little dance which made the panels she stepped on play a whimsical song. "Oh, this is fun," the rookie Huntress said to herself.

Looking around the new area, she soon noticed that there were several doors with different colors and emblems on each of them. When she approached one that seemed to be shifting colors between green, pink, purple, white, black, red, and blue, she noticed a name appear on the frame of the door. "Huh? 'Azalea Calla Holstein'? Why's Azalea's name on this," Sunset asked as she placed her hand on the door and it opened for her.

Peering her head through the door, Sunset soon saw Azalea was surrounded by animals of all kinds. Puppies, kittens, lambs, rabbits, monkeys, and even strangely-colored ponies all ran around or climbed onto Azalea as she giggled in delight. Sunset herself couldn't help but coo over the cuteness of what she saw before leaving to investigate the other doors.

Seeing a silvery-blue door with Lapis' name and emblem on it, Sunset decided to peek inside to check it out. When she did, it looked like the entire area was underwater and she saw Lapis swim by with a silvery-blue mermaid tail instead of legs. "Come on, girls," the mermaid Lapis called out before she swam away. Following her toward some ruins, that looked like a giant fish-like creature, were several other members of Fragment Hunter with their own differently colored mermaid tails. Azalea's was emerald green, Rua's was reddish-purple like her hair, Celadon's was a celadon green, Layla had a ruby red tail, and Sunset saw another version of herself with a fiery-red tail with hints of gold-colored scales.

"What's going on here," Sunset asked herself as she walked away from the door and stepped on the stained glass platforms again. As she tried to make sense of the situation, Sunset soon saw the stars around her began to move around like they were being blown by the wind. They began to swirl around and gather as they grouped together behind Sunset. Turning around to see what was happening, she soon saw that the stars briefly flashed different colors before falling down through the glass panels. When they did, a woman with black hair that seemed to sparkle like stars and move around like an ethereal wind was passing by appeared in their place. Sunset immediately recognized the person that appeared when she saw their black dress with a blue trim and called out their name. "Nocturne Celeste?"

The woman turned around and was surprised to see that Sunset was right behind her. "Sunset Blaze? What are you doing in the realm of dreams?"

* * *

 **And with this small cliffhanger before the next chapter, we now have something to look forward to. A new power of Sunset's Semblance! We'll get more explanations about it and have a scene with Nocturne when the story returns.**

 **In all honesty, I was planning on making this cliffhanger a different one, but I thought that with the slumber party in the penthouse, it would have been a great opportunity to show off more of Sunset's discovery of her Semblance. The one I originally planned will be at the end of the next chapter, so get ready for it then.**

 **I hope that you all enjoyed the scenes in this chapter and if you did, make sure to leave a review.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	23. Girl Of Your Dreams

**Hello, readers! Welcome back to "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Fragment Hunter enjoyed spending time with Azalea's childhood friend and rising idol singer, Bianca Coloratura. After an encounter with some local gangbangers and Bianca's visit to a recording studio, the girls of Fragment Hunter have a sleepover with Bianca in her penthouse suite. While everyone went to bed for the night, Sunset seemed to have stumbled upon something in her dreams and has apparently met with her mentor's sister, Nocturne Celeste. How is the Huntress standing before Sunset? What did she mean by 'realm of dreams'? Find out now!**

 **Wake Up!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my RWBY Original Characters**

* * *

"What do you mean 'realm of dreams'," Sunset asked Nocturne as she looked around at the starry surroundings and stained glass platforms.

"It's exactly as I say," Nocturne stated. "You're in a location where dreams intersect with each other."

"But... how are you here," Sunset questioned. "How am _I_ here?!"

"You told my sister that you had the power to explore another person's mind, correct," Nocturne asked. As Sunset nodded, the starry-haired Huntress continued. "Your Semblance may be an example of one that has 'surges' that cannot be turned off. Some Semblances are always active, such as one of my old classmate's and his 'Misfortune'. He can cause instances of bad luck to his enemies, but it also works on him because of these surges."

"Wow. I just thought that I might have activated my powers in my sleep," Sunset commented.

"That's the more likely explanation because you aren't hearing everyone's thoughts all the time in the real world," Nocturne remarked.

Sunset nodded in agreement before she returned to her earlier question. "How _are_ you here anyway? I thought that your Semblance was being able to control shadows," Sunset asked.

"That is only one of the powers of my Semblance, Nightmare's Bane," Nocturne explained as she held out her hand and several stars floating around the two women moved toward her open palm. "I can enter dreams and manipulate them how I see fit," she said as the stars turned into shards of brightly colored glass before setting on fire and transforming into a bird with brightly-colored feathers. "As for how it allows me to control shadows in the real world, dreams and reality are two sides of the same coin. Same with light and darkness. The darkness of nightmares can be defeated and harnessed for more noble efforts," Nocturne elaborated as she waved her hands to transform the bird into a cloud of blossoms that froze over and turned into a living snowman that rested on her palm.

"Whoa... I wonder if I can do that stuff," Sunset remarked in awe.

"I believe that deep down, you _do_ have the ability to accomplish many feats," Nocturne told the younger girl as she placed her hand on Sunset's shoulder. "You have a lot to discover about yourself and your friends. So, I suggest that we have a little fun by figuring those out," she added with a playful smile on her face as she pointed to all the other doors floating around them.

Sunset saw what Nocturne meant and smiled at the idea. "I like the way you think." Looking around at the various doors and emblems, Sunset and Nocturne began to figure out which dream to enter first. "Hmm... Let's see here. Counting my own dream, I've been in three so far," Sunset muttered to herself. "Azalea's dream was her surrounded by super adorable and cuddly animals while Lapis and a few of us were mermaids exploring some underwater ruins... We looked _good_ as mermaids."

"Then how about we explore this one," Nocturne suggested as she gestured to a red door with a magic lamp emblem on it. "This one seems like it belongs to your friend, Layla Carbuncle."

"I wonder what she's dreaming about," Sunset mused before opening the door to reveal a stage with a shadow-covered crowd. After a few seconds, Layla stepped onto the stage and performed a captivating belly dancer for everyone watching her. When she finished her dance, Layla transformed into an adorable purple-furred monkey and started climbing the curtains before she was enveloped in colorful smoke and the stage vanished along with her. "Well, it seems to be like my dream earlier. Only with less cherry gelatin wasp nests," Sunset remarked and got an amused chuckle out of Nocturne.

Soon, the colored smoke returned and entered an ornate bottle. Sunset and Nocturne approached the bottle and they were transported to what looked like an enormous bedroom. Layla was now reclining on a large bed that looked like it could hold about ten people. "This is the life," Layla sighed contently before she and her dream's visitors saw more smoke appear. People began to appear from the smoke and Sunset immediately recognized them as members of Fragment Hunter as well as Team SSSN from Haven Academy, Yang Xiao Long, Weiss Schnee, and Bianca Coloratura. "I take it back. _This_ is the life," Layla remarked as the bottle's visitors were suddenly clad in revealing clothes or outfits similar to her own.

"Okay, is she part of a harem? Or are they _her_ harem," Sunset asked as she watched several of the females in the dream feed Team SSSN fresh fruits. "Either way, I think we now know that Layla's got some interesting dreams that fit her appearance."

"Agreed. Let's explore someone else's dreams," Nocturne said as she and Sunset watched Layla get kissed by the dream versions of Yang Xiao Long and Sun Wukong. When they exited the dream, Nocturne turned back to Sunset to speak with her. "Just so that you know, some dreams can be riskier than others to enter."

"Risky as in 'dangerous nightmares' or risky as in 'erotic dreams'," Sunset dryly asked.

"Both," Nocturne bluntly stated. "I remember exploring a few dreams that ended up becoming a little... _intimate..._ I swear, sometimes you just can't look away. Dammit, Terracotta."

"Okay, I think that might be a little too much info," Sunset stated to try and move onto something else. "How about we explore somebody else's dreams? But if it ends up turning into another hot one like Layla's in the bottle, I'm leaving."

"Very well," Nocturne agreed. "How about you choose the next one?"

"Hmm... Huh? This one looks interesting," Sunset remarked as she saw a gray-colored door with Silver Wuruhi's name and emblem on it. "But given his behavior around Bianca from earlier, I have a feeling what this might become. Ah well, this is too much fun," Sunset said as she opened Silver's dream door and walked inside with Nocturne. When the two dreamwalkers entered, they found themselves in a forest to see Silver fighting against Yang Xiao Long and Celadon Flynn in a sparring match. After the two blondes punched Silver had enough to shatter a tree into pieces, Silver fell unconscious before opening his eyes to see Bianca Coloratura and that he was resting on her lap. "I knew it," Sunset remarked as she playfully rolled her eyes.

"Are you okay, Silver," the dream Bianca asked with a flirty tone. "Don't worry, your guardian angel will help you feel better," she said before she was suddenly wearing a nurse's uniform.

"Okay! Don't need to be here anymore," Sunset and Nocturne both said before leaving the dream faster enough to kick up clouds of dust. Shortly after, the dust clouds ran off as well.

"I called it," Sunset stated. "Then again, he _is_ a teenage boy who met a hot blonde that was flirting with him when they first met."

"You wouldn't be surprised at how many of those I stumble across," Nocturne replied. "One more and maybe call it a night?"

"Yeah, maybe," Sunset answered as she started looking around for another dream to explore. "Hey, how did you even figure out this power of yours," Sunset asked.

"My Semblance? Well, I first discovered my power to explore the realm of dreams when I was a child," Nocturne explained. "Aurora was busy with her training, but I wanted to play with her. After she had finished for the day, she was exhausted and chose to get some sleep. I wanted her to wake up and play a game with me, but she was fast asleep. Soon, I ended up falling asleep next to her and I soon entered her dreams."

"Really? What was she dreaming about," Sunset asked.

"Well, it was a long time ago, but I still remember it fondly because it was the first time I unlocked my Semblance," Nocturne said. "My sister was dreaming about being a princess and waiting for her hero to come and save her from the Creatures of Grimm, but then they ended up turning into marshmallows and pancakes before a pack of hungry puppies ate them." Sunset and Nocturne laughed at the thought of what the latter described before continuing with the memory. "After I found Aurora, we talked about how I was able to enter her dreams and then we finally got to play as we tested my powers in the dream realm."

"Aww, that's so sweet," Sunset voiced.

"Yes, it's such a wonderful memory," Nocturne agreed. "How about this dream," she suggested as she pointed to a new door. It was viridian green with a gray border, had an iron horseshoe emblem, and the name on it read Slate Quartz.

"Maybe Slate's will be less sexual in nature," Sunset said to herself before opening the door. When they entered Slate's dream, they saw that Slate was facing off against somebody in a trick shooting contest. As the gunslinger of Team FCSA took aim, he fired his pistol and it only released a blast of confetti and made a fun party sound. "Hahaha! Could that get any funnier," Sunset asked before Slate tried to reach for more ammo, but noticed he was in his underwear. "It can," Sunset laughed as she saw Slate cover himself before diving into a locker from Beacon Academy and flying to the moon. Then, the locker turned into a bat which then transformed into Sunset Blaze. When the real Sunset saw her dream appearance, she saw that the dream copy was wearing a long red and black dress before revealing fangs in her mouth. "Huh. I look _hot_ as a vampire," Sunset commented before the dream vampire version of herself was now in a duel against Jennifer Dawn of Team PRDT with Slate joining in halfway through the battle.

"As much fun as this would be to keep watching, I think we should return to the real world now," Nocturne stated.

"Oh, but it's just getting good," Sunset whined as she saw her dream counterpart summon Azalea to try and distract Slate while the battle went on.

"Now, young lady. Otherwise, we'll end up waking him up if he catches you. Then, you'll be forced out of his dream," Nocturne told the girl.

"Fine," Sunset reluctantly agreed and turned to walk out the door. When it closed on her, Sunset thought of something. "Hey, maybe I could wake up Azalea more often this way," Sunset said to herself. "That way, she doesn't oversleep."

"You could try, but I don't think you'll be able to find Azalea's dream anymore," Nocturne stated as she pointed to where Azalea's dream door used to be. Sunset saw that the door had vanished and Nocturne cut her off to answer the obvious question that was coming. "The reason you can't find the door is that she's awake now."

"Really? What time is it, then," Sunset asked.

"I'd have to say sunrise," Nocturne said. "You should get up now."

"Wait, won't I be tired because of all of this dream hopping," Sunset questioned.

"If it's like my Semblance when you enter the dream world, your body will have been in a sleep-like state that allows you to rest while your mind explores."

"That would be _really_ helpful," Sunset commented. "Well, I guess I should get going. I'll see you around, Nocturne."

"Take care, Sunset. May the dreams you've explored grant you deeper insight into your abilities," Nocturne said with a bow before she vanished in a gust of wind that transformed her into stardust and blew away. Seeing the dramatic exit, Sunset soon saw multiple colors flash before her eyes before they faded away and were replaced by darkness.

* * *

Sunlight shined on Sunset's face as she began to wake up from her adventure in the dream realm. Sitting up, she saw that several of the other girls were still asleep. Heading to the penthouse suite's shower, Sunset saw that somebody was already in it and that Bianca was drying off her wings. "Sunset, perfect timing," Bianca said as she saw the fiery-haired girl. "Can you help me with my wings? They're a pain to deal with on my own."

"Sure thing," Sunset agreed and helped Bianca out. "So, what do we have to do later today again?"

"Meeting up with the band that's going to play with me during my concert," Bianca replied as flapped her wings when Sunset finished helping her. "After that, I'm doing an appearance at a local community center for charity."

"Sounds like a busy day ahead of us," Sunset remarked as the shower stopped running and the girl who was inside grabbed a towel that was hanging on the side. Opening the shower door, Azalea wrapped herself in a fluffy white towel to see that Sunset was looking at her. "Azalea! You'll never guess what happened last night while we were asleep!"

"What happened," Azalea asked as she grabbed a smaller towel to dry her hair.

"I can use my Semblance in my sleep to explore dreams," Sunset exclaimed with a big giddy smile on her face.

"You can!? That's amazing," Azalea said as she hugged Sunset tightly. "What was it like?"

"I'll tell everyone later," Sunset told her friend. "But I will say this, some of them were _weird_."

* * *

After all of Fragment Hunter got up and went on with the day, they talked about Sunset's newest discovery about her powers. "Amazing! You can do that now," Celadon asked.

"Yup. All of those dreams, I managed to see each of them," Sunset replied before looking at an embarrassed Silver and Layla. The two were laughing sheepishly as they walked at the back of the group. "Hormonal teenager dreams aside, I'm surprised that I can do stuff like this," Sunset said. "I wonder what my limit is?"

"I'm sure you'll find out in the future," Terracotta remarked as he lead the teenagers and Kurenai to their destination. As they walked through the city, the Bull Faunus soon stopped dead in his tracks and looked around. "Hmm..."

"Dad? What's wrong," Azalea asked. Suddenly, a loud noise was heard and it wasn't too far from Fragment Hunter's location. Everyone went to see what it was as emergency sirens sounded off and they saw a that a train had crashed into the city. Looking at the damage, Azalea and the others saw Team RWBY was in the wreckage of the train and looked fine. "What happened to them? Did their mission end up causing this?"

As Azalea and the others wondered what was going on, a loud rumbling was heard from underground and something erupted from the same crash site Team RWBY was at. Everyone looking on saw the familiar and frightening black monsters that had appeared with the train wreck and panicked. The Creatures of Grimm had breached into Vale. Watching numerous types of Grimm charge through the city and target innocent civilians, Fragment Hunter knew that they had a job to do when Terracotta turned back to them. "Split up! Protect Bianca and Kurenai, rescue any bystanders, and deal with the Grimm," Terracotta said as he drew his sword and prepared for battle.

* * *

 **Alrighty! Now with this chapter ending, we're now at the Volume 2 finale, "Breach"! I wanted to get to this scene at the end of the previous chapter, but I thought that the whole dream world thing would've been perfect to show off more of both Sunset and Nocturne. With that out of the way, we'll now get onto what Fragment Hunter does during the end of Volume 2. Prepare yourselves for the next chapter, "Breach: Another Story"!**

 **At Chapter 25, I'll be focusing on some more points that take place between Volume 2 and Volume 3. Like what were other students up to while Team RWBY was dealing with the events of "RWBY: Grimm Eclipse" and some other time before the Vytal Festival began. Hopefully, I'll be able to start the actual tournament with my Original Characters around Chapter 30 or so. But in any case, I'm excited to keep writing more of my fanfic as it keeps going on.**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	24. Breach: Another Story

**Welcome back to "Sideline: Another Story", readers! In the last chapter, Sunset learned of another function of her Semblance before the canon events of RWBY caught up to the group. Now with the Creatures of Grimm breaching into Vale, it's time for the students to live up to their jobs and protect everyone they can from the soulless demonic monsters!**

 **Sound the alarms!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters**

* * *

After Terracotta gave Fragment Hunter their instructions, they split up into their individual teams and went off to help whoever they could. "Bianca, this way," Azalea called out as she grabbed her friend's hand while Slate helped a panicking Kurenai get to safety. As Team FCSA continued their job of being Bianca's bodyguards, Team SLVR began to help any innocent bystanders while Team SAFR and Terracotta began to deal with the Grimm that started to surround them.

"Alright, who's first," Terracotta said to the horde of Grimm as he popped his neck. To answer his question, a large Ursa stepped forward and roared loudly. Terracotta just smirked and swung his sword at the beast, cutting it clean in half and sending a blade of air carving through several other Grimm before stopping just in front of a store window. Seeing several Creeps dive underground to get him from below, Terra just focused his Aura to activate the Earth Dust in his sword, Sarangay. Using the Dust, spires of rock shot up around Terracotta that impaled the Creeps before they surfaced. "Nice try," Terracotta snarked before breaking off one of the rock spires and throwing it into a Death Stalker. When the scorpion-like Grimm was struck by the stone spike, Terra punched through the Grimm to kill it.

"Man, he was _really_ holding back on us during training," Sunset remarked as she saw Terra carve through Grimm after Grimm with ease.

"Focus," Rebecca called out as she pulled several shurikens from her armguards and threw them at nearby Beowolves. When the projectiles hit the demonic werewolves, they incinerated or electrocuted the Grimm enough to stun them before Rebecca finished them off with her sword. "We have work to do."

"Right," Sunset agreed as she readied her weapon's sword form. Slashing away at any Grimm that came near them, Sunset and Vinyl were able to deal with the weaker monsters before the older and more experienced Grimm arrived. Seeing a Nevermore swoop down toward them, Sunset thought that it was a perfect opportunity to test out some of their Team Attacks. "Fantasia," Sunset called out for Vinyl and Celadon to hear. At the command, Celadon and Vinyl aimed their Semblances at the incoming Nevermore as it let out a cry. When gems and energy blasts collided in the Nevermore's beak, the Grimm swallowed them and they exploded in its throat. As the Grimm's corpse fell to the streets, Vinyl created platforms for the girls to stand on to avoid getting hit.

Taking the chance, Sunset jumped off the platform Vinyl supplied and jumped onto the nearest rooftop. Switching her weapon into its sniper rifle mode, Team SAFR's leader took aim and fired at any Grimm that got too close to anybody that couldn't react or defend themselves. " _Guys, how are you all holding up,_ " Sunset asked telepathically with her Semblance.

* * *

" _Oh, you know... doing as well as we can do in a Grimm attack,_ " Rua commented as she teleported in front of a downed bystander and punched a Beowolf in the chin with her arm blades. Slashing the Grimm's head off soon after, she then took hold of the civilian and teleported them to a nearby building for shelter. Returning to the battle, Rua began to take out as many Grimm as she could while the others provided support. "Silver, I could use a little help over here," Rua called out as she turned her weapon back into its shield form and blocked an Ursa's claws.

As the Ursa roared, a chain wrapped around its neck and pulled the monster back. "Way ahead of you, Rua," Silver said as he revved his chainsaw's engine. The chain vibrated around the Grimm's throat and decapitated the demonic bear before Silver swung the chain into a small group of Beowolves that pounced toward him. As the Grimm were either knocked down or cut up, Silver chuckled to himself before preparing the knives in his boots and started dealing with the monsters that jumped at him again. "Oh yeah," the Wolf Faunus laughed as he kicked a few weakened Beowolves and some Creeps to stab them. "Who's top dog now?!"

While Silver and Rua kept using melee attacks on the Grimm, Lapis used her trident to defend herself and Vixen as they got more bystanders to safety. "Vixen, we need a distraction," Lapis called out as she created a wall of ice to block an alley from some Grimm before a Death Stalker broke through it, which allowed for more Beowolves to chase after them.

"Don't worry," Vixen said as she used her illusions to create multiple copies of herself and Lapis to lure the Grimm away from their destination. "You'll be safe here," she told a middle-aged man that she brought to a building and some other civilians helped carry him inside. "Now then, let's deal with these Grimm," Vixen said with a slightly sinister smirk as she pulled out her fans. When the Fox Faunus girl left the alley, she and Lapis used their weapons to burn and electrocute any nearby Grimm before Lapis stabbed them in the heads to finish them off. "Take this," Vixen exclaimed as she unleashed a wave of fire from her fans and burned several Creeps before the Death Stalker came back.

Lapis and Vixen stared down at the Death Stalker before Silver and Rua regrouped with them to handle the giant scorpion monster. "This thing is covered in armor, what do we do," Rua asked as she blocked one of the Death Stalker's pincers with her shield.

"I don't think it has much actual armor plating underneath it," Lapis suggested.

"Vixen, illusions. We need to distract it," Silver instructed and Vixen nodded as she thought of what illusion to create. "Rua, get ready to make this bug head for the sky while Lapis finishes it off." At Silver's command, the girls of Team SLVR began to deal with the Grimm. As Vixen used her Semblance to create a swarm of birds that surrounded the Death Stalker and blocked its vision, Rua jumped up onto the monster's tail before teleporting both of them high into the sky. While Rua teleported to get to safety and deal with Nevermores that were approaching, the Death Stalker was falling right toward Lapis and Silver. "Now," Silver exclaimed.

At Silver's word, Lapis created a giant trident made out of ice to impale the falling Grimm. While it didn't immediately kill the monster, it _did_ cry out and writhe in pain. "Cover your ears, guys," Lapis warned as she took a deep breath. Knowing what they were expecting, Silver and Vixen covered their ears and were slightly grateful that they had tails for their Faunus trait instead of ears when Lapis began to scream. As Lapis yelled out, her Semblance began to make quick work of both the weakened Death Stalker and any Grimm that were foolish enough to charge in her direction. When Lapis stopped, Rua teleported beside her team to signal that backup had arrived in the form of more students from Beacon as well as the visiting Atlesian Military. "Well, at least we'll be able to win this fight," Lapis mentioned just as Rua teleported next to her and was breathing heavily.

"I'm wondering how the others are doing with Bianca," Silver said in a worried tone as he saw more Grimm approach them as a few android soldiers stepped up next to the team. While the thought lingered in his mind of the safety of his friends and client, Silver returned his focus to the battle as he pulled out his chainsaw again.

* * *

"Bianca, this way," Azalea called out as she grabbed her friend's hand. As Team FCSA tried to find someplace to get Bianca and Kurenai to safety, Grimm started to follow after them. Slate was carrying Kurenai because the manager fell down in their rush, but he still managed to aim one of his revolvers at any approaching Grimm and shot at them. Taking out a few monsters and injuring the tougher ones, Slate put his gun away and focused on getting his clients to safety.

"Leave these Grimm to me," Cereza said as she pulled out her Semi-Automatic Tonfa Pistols and aimed them at the Creeps and injured Ursa Major that approached. Layla went on with the others to help, which left Cereza on her own to handle the Grimm that she could see. "I believe that naughty pets should be disciplined," Cereza said as she opened fire on the monsters. As her shots killed off the Creeps, the Ursa Major charged forward to try and swipe its claws at her, only for Cereza to activate her Semblance and deliver a painful counterattack. With a powerful kick, the Ursa was knocked away and crashed into some approaching Beowolves to injure them before the monster bear died. "So many of you, but you can't take down one girl? Disappointing," Cereza joked before going to deal with a Boarbatusk and more Grimm. But unknown to her, she was being watched by a mysterious person wearing a white cloak and a gold-colored mask that depicted a sun shining with rays of light that resembled peacock feathers.

While Cereza fought off more Grimm and the unknown being watched her, the rest of Team FCSA moved through the backstreets of Vale to get Bianca and Kurenai to safety. "I think if we go back to the hotel, we'll be safe there," Kurenai suggested as Slate carried the manager on his back. "Am I heavy to you," Kurenai asked out of concern for the gunslinger.

"Nah, this actually isn't that bad compared to Terracotta's martial arts lessons," Slate remarked.

"We can talk about this later," Layla said as she prepared her lamp-shaped gun called 'Djinn Desire' and took aim at some Beowolves that found them. Firing at them, Layla was able to inflict some major damage before she used her 'Ifrit Talon' scimitar to cut them to pieces. "We need to do our job," Layla explained.

"You're right," Azalea agreed. As they ran toward the hotel, they soon saw it up ahead and noticed the large number of Grimm in front of the building to try and get inside. "Now what," Azalea asked.

Slate thought of what to do before he came up with a plan. "Layla and I will distract the Grimm while you take Bianca and Kurenai inside," Slate told Azalea. "Regroup with us when you can."

"Alright, Slate," Azalea said as her teammates stepped toward the Grimm. "Good luck," she whispered.

When Slate reloaded his revolver, he pointed it at the nearest Grimm and fired a warning shot which grazed its face. "Come and get us, you freaks of nature," Slate yelled at the Grimm and ran away with Layla at his side. As most of the Grimm chased them into the backstreets again, Azalea went ahead and pulled out Gladion to strike at the Grimm using its Lightning setting before switching to Ice Dust to create a sword and stabbing the last Beowolf in the jaw. With the entrance cleared of Grimm, Azalea took Bianca and Kurenai to the hotel and separated with them there.

"We'll come back when this whole thing is over," Azalea shouted to them as she ran off to go and help her team. Kurenai soon collapsed from fear and exhaustion, which prompted Bianca to carry him over to a sofa in the hotel lobby before she turned back to the door.

"Don't think I'm going to leave you after months of being apart, Lea," Bianca said to herself as she ran off to her room and quickly changed into a top that let her spread out her wings to fly. Jumping off the penthouse balcony and soaring after her friend, Bianca saw Slate and Layla dealing with some Grimm in an alley. Diving down toward them, Bianca went for a kick that connected with the back of an Ursa's head and knocked it down. "Hey, I thought that I could help," she told the two members of Team FCSA.

"I don't think you should be here," Slate said as he moved Bianca out of the way and fired several Lightning Dust bullets at the Grimm in front of them. "Why did you come back," he asked the idol.

"I didn't want to become a Huntress like Azalea, but I know how to fight," Bianca said as she kicked a Creep in the face before jumping up and stomping on the monster to finish it off. "Who do you think Lea's regular training partner was because of everything at Sanctuary Academy?"

Before Slate and Layla could attempt to argue with her, the Ursa that Bianca kicked was back up and roared loudly before swinging its arm into Slate and knocking him into the girls. As they began to pick themselves up, the Grimm began to walk up to the teenagers menacingly to instill fear in them. Slate and Layla tried to reach for their guns, before realizing that they were knocked away. Silently panicking, the three were almost ready to become Grimm food when Azalea managed to find them.

Azalea saw that Bianca must have decided to help like she always did back home, but she was trapped with Slate and Layla. Seeing her childhood friend and the teammates that she made when she first arrived at Beacon in danger, Azalea glared at the Grimm and her eyes changed from green to red. The monsters soon noticed the strong anger coming from Azalea and turned toward her. "Leave. My. Friends. ALONE," Azalea screamed as she held her Dust Baton in her hand. The Grimm all jumped at her, but Azalea's body began to glow from using her Semblance. But unlike the last time, the light that hit the Grimm was a black color and it caused the monsters to crash to the ground. The Ursa and other monsters all cried out in pain when they tried to move, but it was as if their bodies were much heavier than normal. After another yell from Azalea, the Creatures of Grimm all gave off a loud and sickening crack before their bodies evaporated. Azalea panted after her screaming and turned to her friends when her eyes returned to their normal green color. "You alright?"

"Yeah," Layla meekly said after getting back up. "But what was _that_!?"

"It looked like Gravity Dust," Slate remarked. "But I didn't see you use your baton on them."

"I... think it was my Semblance," Azalea said as she looked at Gladion to see it was set to Gravity. "It must react with the Dust in Gladion."

"Oh, that's just amazing, Azalea," Bianca exclaimed as she hugged her friend. "You'll be able to kick all kinds of butt as a Huntress!"

While Azalea blushed at her childhood friend's encouragement, Sunset's voice echoed through all of Team FCSA's heads. " _What was that? I felt Azalea's anger and it was just over,_ " Sunset asked with her Semblance.

" _We'll explain later_ ," Layla told Sunset. " _Let's just finish what we can._ "

" _I don't think that we need to worry anymore,_ " Sunset stated. " _Team CFVY, some of the transfer students, and a couple of teacher from Beacon came to help out. Same with the Atlesian Military._ "

"Man, this day was _really_ eventful," Slate remarked as he placed his guns in their holsters. However just as he put his weapons away, some Creeps popped up from underground and were about to attack the four teens. Before they could draw their weapons again, the Grimm all collided with a green barrier that knocked them backward. "What the heck," Slate asked before he saw Azalea's dog, Dante growling at the monsters with glowing green eyes. The dog's eyes flashed green and the barrier suddenly formed spikes on it that extended forward to impale the Grimm. With the monsters defeated, Dante relaxed and walked up to Azalea so that he could lick her face. As Azalea and Bianca just began to play with the dog, Slate and Layla were surprised at what they witnessed. "Your dog has a Semblance," Slate asked in shock.

"Yeah. I did say that Dante was a hunting dog my dad trained," Azalea answered. "Speaking of which, we should go meet up with him," Azalea said as she got up. Still amazed by the fact that Azalea's dog was a capable fighter, Slate and Layla walked beside Azalea and Bianca as Dante lead the way.

* * *

Meeting up at the site of the train crash that brought the Grimm into the city, the Atlesian Military was taking Roman Torchwick away as Team RWBY explained he was responsible for a plan with the White Fang. Apparently, the criminal mastermind and the extremist cell loaded a train with bombs to detonate in Mountain Glenn's underground train system that lead directly to Vale. By decoupling cars from the train, they brought Grimm into the tunnels and had them chase the train all the way to the city. While the plan seemed to work, the Huntsmen all managed to take care of the breach. However, many civilians _were_ harmed in the attack and Fragment Hunter was visiting some of them in the hospital with Bianca Coloratura. "Are you sure that you'll be okay in time for the concert," Bianca asked a band member that was injured.

"I don't think so," he said as he looked at his bandaged hand. "My hand, his ribs, and her head are pretty banged up. At least we're alive, though," the musician remarked as he pointed to his bandmates before he looked on the positive side.

Bianca sighed and smiled. "Yeah. You're right."

"I think we might have to delay the concert until we can find another band," Kurenai stated sadly. "It's not like we can find another one that knows all of your songs, Bianca."

"Wait! We can," Bianca exclaimed. "Fragment Hunter!" As the teenagers all looked at Bianca, she lightly shoved Vinyl and Rua forward. "They said that they were in a band and that they covered so many of my songs. All we need to do is make sure they know what to play for the concert before the Vytal Festival," Bianca told her manager.

Kurenai thought it over before he nodded his head. "Alright. I know that it'll be a lot for you to do, but we could use your help when you can spare the time," he said to Fragment Hunter. "Consider it an opportunity to earn some Lien before you become real Huntresses and Huntsmen."

The teenagers thought it over before Sunset spoke up to Kurenai. "We still have other missions to take before the Vytal Festival, but we'll help out with the concert," Sunset told the manager and extended her hand.

Kurenai shook Sunset's hand and turned on his Scroll. "Now, I just need to go over some extra details involving this agreement. Do you have somebody that I can talk to about this," he asked.

"Azalea's mom can help out with the finer details, Kurenai," Bianca replied as she looked over at Azalea and Terracotta.

"I'll tell Ivy about this," Terracotta said. "But right now, I say that we need some rest after everything that happened today."

"I second that emotion," Slate and Silver agreed. As everyone left for Beacon Academy or the hotel, they looked around at how well Glynda Goodwitch had repaired the city with her Semblance. Because Layla's Semblance was similar, everyone thought that she could accomplish similar feats with enough training. But for the moment, all of the warriors just wanted to have a nice break before they continued on with another mission the next day.

* * *

 **Alright! And I'm done with the Volume 2 finale! When Sideline returns, I'll be focusing on more missions for the characters to go on during the gap between Volume 2 and Volume 3. Like around the time Team RWBY went on their mission to investigate everything that happened in Grimm Eclipse. I'll be introducing a few new characters to the story during then as well. Such as new Huntsman mentors, some villains besides Smoke Shadow and his team, and even some family members of Fragment Hunter (which may or may not fall into the first category as well, XD), and try to make scenes with Bianca's concert.**

 **I hope you all enjoyed the battle scenes in this chapter because it was really fun to work on them! Also, I thought that since animals are stated to have Aura, why not give them Semblances as well if they've been trained enough? That's why I decided to give Dante a Semblance that allows him to create and manipulate barriers.**

 **As for the mysterious masked person who was watching Cereza's battle, I'll explain about them in due time.**

 **Until next chapter, WaterDragonMaverick out!**


	25. A Shining Light

**Welcome readers, to the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". During the last chapter, everyone was involved in the Volume 2 finale, "Breach". Now that the Grimm have been dealt with, the members of Fragment Hunter are ready to take on other missions and get some training in before the Vytal Festival. What kind of mission will each team take on this time? Who will they meet? Will anyone discover new abilities they have? I say that it's time to start seeing what everyone gets into between Volume 2 and Volume 3!**

 **Today is a new day!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only characters I own are of my own Original Characters**

* * *

After the Creatures of Grimm had breached the city and the numerous Huntsmen took care of the attack, students at Beacon Academy were rested from the event and were ready to take on more things that came their way. Fragment Hunter knew that they were ready to go on separate missions of their own later, but they also wanted to enjoy their time together before they went off to find another Huntsman or Huntress to shadow. The twelve teenagers also decided to talk about some things that occurred during their previous job as bodyguards for Bianca Coloratura. "That Torchwick guy is nucking futs," Rua stated as she slammed her empty coffee cup down on the table. "Why would he do that stuff the other day?"

"It's rather difficult to understand the criminal mind, darling," Celadon replied as she filed her nails. "But in this case, Team RWBY apparently chased down a sociopath who has enough charisma to sway a local extremist cell."

"Which makes _no_ sense at all," Silver said as he stared out the window.

"What do you mean, Silver," Slate asked as he lifted his hat up a little to get a better view of the Wolf Faunus. Everyone else turned to Silver as well, paying no attention to the fact that Azalea was holding a large piece of cinnamon toast in her mouth like she was late for class.

Silver sighed before he looked Slate and all the girls in the eyes and asked them an important question. "Why in the hell would the White Fang, the extremist cell now dedicated to showing that the Faunus can be a major threat to not be looked down upon by using violence when the situation calls for it, team up with a regular human criminal to attack a guarded Kingdom using Grimm with Huntsmen right nearby to respond?"

Everyone thought it over and it didn't make any sort of sense the more they pondered it. "You... have a point there, Silver," Sunset remarked.

"Yeah. I'm just wondering why they allied with that Roman Torchwick creep," Silver said as he slammed his boot onto the floor, unintentionally revealing the blades in it.

"The White Fang is a sensitive subject for you," Rebecca asked.

"My parents were Huntsmen that were members of the White Fang before they changed their ways," Silver explained. "I was with them when they were trying to stop an attack on a village about 5 years ago and the White Fang was responsible. The village they attacked was part of a trading route that used Faunus labor and the train station was their target. With members hiding in plain sight, they attacked the train they were sent after and a giant fight broke out. The village was up in flames and my parents had to help everyone get to safety," Silver told his friends as he felt tears beginning to well up and his voice started to crack. "They were weakened from a few explosives and used up the rest of their strength to save a family that was caught in the blast. A few masked White Fang goons tried to deal with them, but this big guy with a serrated weapon finished them off. He tried to go after me, but I kicked him where it hurts after he slashed at my arm," Silver said as he grabbed his armored shoulder tightly. "I had to run away and get to safety. After that whole thing, I wanted to become a Huntsman to make sure nobody went through what I did."

Fragment Hunter was speechless at Silver's story of why he didn't like the White Fang. "Oh... Wow... That's harsh," Layla voiced as she didn't know the correct response.

"Silver," Azalea said sympathetically as she looked at the Wolf Faunus.

"It's in the past," Silver told them. "But I'll never forget that mask of the Faunus who murdered my parents."

Sunset could feel the anger from Silver as he quietly growled like a real wolf. Luckily, the topic was changed to something else by Lapis. "So, any missions any of you guys want to do specifically?"

"I'd love to try my hand at bounty hunting," Rua exclaimed as she pumped a fist in the air.

"I'd actually like to try a Search and Rescue or something like that," Slate said.

"Search and Destroy," Cereza simply stated.

"I'd actually want to see if I could head off to Garrison Academy for a mission," Sunset told everyone. "I'd love to show the place off to you guys."

As the teenagers talked about what missions they would choose if available and what Garrison Academy was like, Cereza thought she saw something through the window. Before she could think of what it could have been, she saw a feather falling from the corner of her eye. Noticing that she had seen the same type of feather before, Cereza had a serious look on her face after she finished her coffee. " _Well, it appears you've come after all_ ," Cereza thought to herself as she adjusted her glasses.

* * *

After enjoying their meal, Fragment Hunter went off to check if there were any missions that the three teams would take separately. Finding the mission boards, Team SAFR went first to choose a mission while Team SLVR and Team FCSA waited. "Hmm... Let's see here," Celadon said as she investigated the choices available. "Escorting a family moving out of Vale? They probably want to get away from the city life. Looks like it was posted a few days before we began shadowing."

"What else is there," Sunset questioned as she wanted to find more options. "Search and Destroy to the west, Bounty mission in the city, Village Security, Search and Destroy to the north, hmm..."

"Save the Bounty mission for us," Rua shouted as she leaned against a far wall as she waited.

"I will," Sunset told the punk girl before she noticed a job detail that caught her eye. "The northern Search and Destroy is outside the borders of Forever Fall! That's around where Garrison Academy is! Perfect," the fiery-haired girl exclaimed as she typed in her team's name for the job. "SAFR... and we're going to get hunting, girls!"

"Alright. Who are we meeting," Vinyl asked.

"I believe that would be me," Aurora Celeste said with a smile on her face. Team SAFR and the rest of Fragment Hunter saw her walk into the room and look at the job that Sunset selected. "I'm sure that you're happy to return to Garrison so soon, but you should know that you've moved on from there, Sunset."

"Yeah. It's just that sometimes I feel like I want to start over from the beginning," Sunset replied.

"I understand how you feel about changing past mistakes. But you need to learn from them and keep moving forward," Aurora told Sunset. "That's what I learned from my teachers in school when I was becoming a Huntress." Sunset smiled at her teacher's words and nodded. "Now come on, we should let your friends choose a new mission. Besides, Nocturne tells me you learned about something your Semblance allows you to do. Care to tell me about it?"

As Sunset began to tell Aurora about her Semblance allowing her to explore dreams, Team SAFR went to pack for the trip to the outskirts of Vale. When the all-female team of Fragment Hunter left, Silver and Rua were quick to find the Bounty mission and accepted it. "Looks like our job is to help a Huntsman chase down a few felons who robbed a couple of stores in downtown," Lapis stated as she read the details of the request.

"Well, they won't get far with us going after them," Silver and Rua exclaimed as the two bumped fists. "Let's go!"

After Team SLVR left for their job in the city, Team FCSA began searching for a good job. "How about we do Village Security or Search and Rescue," Layla suggested.

"Oh, how about this one? It's at a small coastal village to the west," Azalea said as she pointed at a Village Security mission.

"As good as any I suppose," Cereza remarked as she accepted the job for her team and they went off to pack for the journey. But a minute or two after they left, a cloaked person suddenly appeared in front of the mission boards. They noticed the mission chosen by Team FCSA and brought a hand to their masked face. The golden mask had a peacock-feathered sun design that concealed most of their face, but there was an opening for a single blue eye to be seen. Removing their hand from their chin, the person pulled a book from the sleeves of their cloak before they vanished as mysteriously as they arrived.

* * *

Fragment Hunter finished preparing for their missions and talked to each other before they went on their separate ways. Team SAFR said that Aurora was speaking to an airship pilot to charter a Bullhead to take them to their destination, while Team FCSA would do the same for transport when they met up with their mentor in the school's courtyard. As for Team SLVR, they were going to find their mentor in the city like they did with Terracotta Gaia. "Hey, Azalea. I heard that your dad is instructing a few of the older transfer students in combat classes today," Silver mentioned as he adjusted his jacket.

"Yeah. He's really busy during his extended visit here," Azalea remarked as she moved her bangs out of her face. "I'm betting that we won't really get another lesson from him for a while. Especially with these missions that we're going on now."

"Yeah, so let's just focus on the work," Sunset agreed. While everyone said similar things, Sunset noticed that Cereza was unusually quiet. "Hey, Cereza? You alright?"

"I am," Cereza stated as she kept looking around like she was searching for something.

"Then, why are you just staring off into the distance," Vixen asked.

Before Cereza could answer, several feathers floated around the area and the teenagers saw them blowing in the breeze. While most of them were wondering where they came from, Cereza reached into her jacket for her weapons just as a feather-shaped throwing knife flew right toward the group. Blocking the sneak attack, Cereza searched for where the weapon came from. Sensing something behind her, she turned around to see that ten more knives came out of thin air as she looked at her friends and immediately dodged all of them. "What the hell is going on," Rua shouted in surprise as she witnessed knives appear from nowhere at fly at Team FCSA's leader.

"I don't know, but I can feel somebody's close," Sunset told the others. She was indeed correct as somebody in a cloak appeared suddenly and startled everyone except Cereza. "I didn't think they were _that_ close!"

Cereza stared down the mysterious person as they removed their cloak to reveal what they wore underneath and showed that they were physically identifiable as a male. They wore a hooded white robe with a gold trim, a clerical collar, white boots, and kept wearing their mask. The assailant also had gold-colored spaulders, a silver-colored breastplate with a golden cross design, silver greaves, and armored kneepads for protection. He held a book in his left hand that had what looked like feather-shaped bookmarks, while he held a large double-ended glaive in his right that looked like it could split apart into twin swords. Everyone looking at him could easily tell that he matched heights with Professor Ozpin at 6'6" and that his silence was scaring the bystanders. "So, I take it that you've been following me for a while," Cereza asked.

"I saw what you did during the Breach the other day," the masked man calmly replied as he suddenly had acquired all his throwing knives, then placed them in the book he carried before closing it with a loud snap and putting it in the sleeves of his robe. "I must say that I never expected you to do that sort of thing, even on a team of your own."

"Cereza, you know this preacher-looking knight creep," Rua asked rudely.

"I'm standing right here, young lady. There's no need for that kind of tone," the mystery man voiced to the brawler of Team SLVR.

"I do," Cereza replied to Rua. "We've known each other for a _long_ time."

"I just decided that I needed to test your abilities for myself again, Cereza," the man said as he spun his glaive around and got into a battle stance. Cereza only smirked and waved her hand to signal for the mysterious male to bring it. In an instant, the man moved so fast that it looked like he teleported before using his glaive like a blunt staff to attack Cereza. With fast reflexes, Cereza brought up her tonfa to block the attack before punching at the man's gut. With a few strikes to his stomach to push him away, Cereza continued her assault and threw a few kicks at the man. The masked man blocked the attacks with his glaive before he vanished and threw a punch from behind Cereza.

As Team FCSA's leader got knocked away, she recovered before she could hit the ground and did a handspring to get back up on her feet. Aiming her tonfa at her opponent, Cereza fired several bullets at the man before everyone watching saw him appear behind her with the bullets she fired lined up to hit her from behind. But just like with the knives, Cereza easily and elegantly dodged the redirected shots before jumping in the air and slamming a heel down on the man. He managed to block the first kick with his weapon, but Cereza aimed her tonfa gun at his shoulder and pulled the trigger. While his Aura protected him from the shot, Cereza grabbed his weapon with her legs and flipped to try disarming him. However, the masked man split his weapon in two so that only one of the large blades was sent flying. Cereza smirked as she ran toward the man as he did the same with his sword in hand. The two clashed weapons and Cereza had a slight advantage with her tonfa blocking the attack before she kicked him away. The man ran toward Cereza again, but vanished just as he got near her and reappeared where his second sword fell.

"Whoa, I had no idea that he would be _that_ fast," Lapis commented.

"You'd be surprised," Cereza told the others as she and the sun-masked man charged at each other again. The male smacked Cereza a few times with the flats of his blades, but Cereza managed to use her Time Mirage Semblance to avoid being stabbed by the blade that came at her during the end of his combo attack. "So close," Cereza said as she taunted her opponent before she delivered a series of counterattacks by punching and shooting at the man. With her Time Mirage ending, Cereza finished her attack by kicking him in the face. "How do you like that?"

Picking himself up, the enigmatic fighter brought a hand to his masked face to feel that his mask was damaged. Removing the mask and hood, the man revealed he had a light-skinned complexion, silvery-blue eyes, and had long platinum-blonde hair that fell to the center of his back. "I must say this, Cereza. You've improved over the months you were at Beacon," the man said. "I'm impressed, my child."

"I can tell that you've been holding back a great deal, Father," Cereza replied and confused her friends. As both fighters put their weapons away, Cereza turned to her friends while the robed man pulled his book out again. "Everyone, I want you to meet my father."

"Pleased to meet you," Lucifer greeted with a polite bow. "My name is Father Lucifer Fujita. Huntsman and traveling priest. May He grant you what you require for your futures."

Fragment Hunter was understandably confused at the assailant who went from attacking his own daughter to politely introducing himself and reading from his bible, which apparently held throwing knives as bookmarks. "Um... H-hello," Azalea, Sunset, and Silver all greeted back.

"If you don't mind me asking," Celadon asked before Father Lucifer spoke to her.

"It's not an issue, my child. Speak your mind," the priest said.

"Why did you just attack Cereza like that," Celadon bluntly asked.

Cereza just rolled her eyes before answering. "After I wanted to become a Huntress like my mother, my father decided that he would 'test me' during my training. He always does this to keep my reflexes sharp and my mind calm," the bespectacled redhead explained. "Honestly, it was a matter of time before he eventually did it here at Beacon."

"Well, we can't complain about harsh training after all the stuff Azalea's dad does with us," Rua remarked.

"Yeah, you got that right," Silver and the other members of Fragment Hunter agreed.

Lucifer smiled at the group of teenagers as he pulled his Scroll out of his pocket and looked at something. "We must be going if you all want to go on your missions," he said. "Come along, Team FCSA. We have a village to help for a day or two." Team FCSA was surprised that Lucifer Fujita was the Huntsman they were shadowing, but the team soon grabbed their bags and followed the male to their Bullhead.

"Well, I guess we'll see each other within the week," Azalea said to the rest of Fragment Hunter as she, Sunset, and Team SLVR all waved goodbye before going on their own ways.

* * *

 **And I'm done with this chapter! We hear about Silver's past and why he doesn't like the White Fang, the teams go on separate missions, and we meet another Huntsman that we'll learn more of later. I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter because this current story arc is going to focus on the teams as individuals more than the large group that they are.**

 **Upcoming events for these missions will include a new type of Grimm or two, seeing what Garrison Academy is like, possibly encountering other teams on missions of their own, and definitely more insight to the members of Fragment Hunter.**

 **BTW, during the scenes with Lucifer Fujita, I suggest listening to "You May Call Me Father" from Bayonetta 2.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	26. Bounty Hunting

**Hello, readers. Welcome back to "Sideline: Another Story" and the start of the first mission for the characters after Volume 2 ended. Today, we'll be focusing on Team SLVR and their bounty hunting mission in Vale for two reasons. First, they don't need an airship to reach their destination as they're staying in the city. Second, SLVR was actually the first team I made up and I never showed how they did in the initiation, so I want to give them focus. Either way, I'm going to be focusing more on showing each team and their mentors as characters as Fragment Hunter does the work they signed up for.**

 **Wanted: Dead or Alive!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only characters I own are of my Original Characters**

* * *

"Well, I guess we'll see each other within the week," Azalea said to the rest of Fragment Hunter as she waved goodbye to Team SLVR and Team SAFR before leaving with Team FCSA to find the Bullhead they were going to take. After all three teams said their farewells, Team SLVR was ready to head off into Vale and meet up with their current mentor. Holding onto Rua, the four teenagers warped from Beacon Academy to the city in a flash of light.

Seeing that they warped to where the Breach started, the team turned to Rua. "Is this the first place that you could think of before teleporting us," Lapis asked.

"Yeah," Rua stated as she caught her breath. Teleporting multiple people always took a lot out of her, but it was getting easier to do with how much she was doing it. "It was either here or Magnolia's. And we're here for work."

"True," Lapis noted. "Let's see where we were supposed to meet up with our mentor," she said as she pulled out her Scroll and looked at the details of the Bounty mission they selected. "Hmm... It says that we should meet up with him at A Simple Wok?"

"Isn't it a little early for lunch," Vixen asked.

"Well, at least we know where that is," Silver remarked. "Come on, let's go." At Silver's instruction, Rua grabbed onto all three of her teammates and they teleported away again.

* * *

After reaching their destination, Team SLVR saw that the noodle stand was open for business and the shopkeep was tending to a customer. From what they could see, the man sitting down at the stand was a Faunus as they saw his bare feet were actually falcon talons. Turning around, the man was still slurping his meal as he looked at Team SLVR with sky blue eyes. He looked to be 5'11", had a lightly tanned lean build, spiky windswept blonde hair, and a pair of aviator goggles rested on his forehead as he finished his meal. "Hey there. You guys Team SLVR," the Faunus asked as he placed the bowl he had on the counter and left his payment next to the empty dish.

"Yeah, we are," Rua said as she looked at the Falcon Faunus' outfit. He wore a black t-shirt, black and silver fingerless gloves, a pair of brown cargo pants with a gold-colored belt buckle, and a bomber jacket with armor on the sleeves and shoulders. Silver and the others saw that the shoulders of his jacket and his belt buckle had an emblem that looked like a tornado with a wing emerging from the side. He also carried a falcon-designed combat knife with what looked like Wind Dust in the hilt and wore a pair of greaves that Team SLVR immediately compared to Mercury Black's boots. "Who are you?"

"Name's Ventus," the Falcon Faunus stated in a friendly manner. "Call me 'Ven' if you want."

"Why does that name sound familiar," Lapis questioned as she tried to think of the answer.

"Who cares," Vixen told her teammate. "Let's just go and catch some bad guys! I hope that we can trick them before getting them."

"Your pranks tend to need prep time and we need to catch them ASAP," Rua retorted. "Let's just get to work."

"That's the spirit," Ventus said as he stood up. "Come on! We need to get info about our bounties. I know just the place to start, too."

* * *

Team SLVR and Ventus all made their way to Junior's nightclub that the teenagers visited before in order to get information about Smoke Shadow. The Falcon Faunus walked up to the bar where Junior was taking stock of what he had available when the information broker saw the Huntsman. "What do you want? We aren't open yet," Junior told Ventus before he and the twin girls at the bar with him noticed Team SLVR. "Oh, it's you kids again. I take it that you need to know more about somebody?"

"That would be a 'yes', Junior," Rua said as she glared at the large man.

"We need to know about the usual hideouts of Redd Stone, Nicole Blade, Clay Crimson, Duncan Upaz, and Lucas Lloyd," Ventus told Junior. "A few friends of mine in Vale said that they used to hang out around here before some girl trashed the place."

"Please don't bring that up," Junior said to Ventus before moving from the bar and picked up a large bazooka. Now standing over Ven, the club owner looked at the Faunus before speaking again. "I'm not going to give you any information because you haven't exactly done anything to make it worth my time. So, I suggest that you and those brats leave before we have to make you leave," he threatened as several of Junior's subordinates surrounded the five warriors. "Unless you can do something for me," Junior added.

While the members of Team SLVR looked annoyed with the man, Ventus just laughed in amusement. "You really want to make a deal with me," Ven asked Junior, who only smirked at the Faunus. Suddenly, Ventus grabbed Junior and jumped into the air while holding onto the man. Everyone was surprised at the fact that Ventus was now floating in midair while holding onto Junior's outfit with his talons. "Let's discuss it then," Ven remarked with a smile as he held a panicking Junior above the nightclub's dance floor. As Junior flailed around, he dropped his bazooka and it landed right on one of his henchmen, hitting them in the head. "So, how should I pay you for the intel I need? I'm kind of low on money at the moment. A Simple Wok has _great_ food," Ven said casually as he held onto Junior and flew around the room like he was pacing on the ground. "I could do you a favor? What would you want me to do?"

"Put me down! Please, put me down! Just put me back on the floor," Junior practically screamed as Ven kept moving.

"Oh, that works," Ventus remarked as he began to lean against the disco ball. "Is that a deal," he asked as he placed Junior on top of the disco ball and offered his hand.

"Yes! It's a deal," Junior said in a hasty and panicking voice as he clung to the disco ball.

Offering his own hand, Junior and Ventus made their deal and the Falcon Faunus put the club's owner down on the ground. "Great! Now, about those hangouts of who I mentioned," Ventus told Junior. As the large man began heading over to the bar to get something to write down the addresses Ven requested on, Team SLVR and Junior's henchmen were still shocked at what just happened. "What? You've never met somebody who could fly before," Ven questioned as he turned to Team SLVR.

"Well... Not like that," Silver replied.

"And we've never really seen somebody do _that_ before," Rua mentioned as she referred to Ven's 'negotiation style'.

"Oh yeah, when you go to school in Vacuo, you tend to try and do what you can to get what you can," Ventus remarked. Soon, Junior returned with the list of locations that the team's bounty tended to frequent. "Thanks, Junior! See you some other time," Ventus said as he took the slip of paper.

"Please don't," Junior meekly replied as he looked at the Huntsman.

"Come on, we've got some bounties to catch," Ven told Team SLVR as the five left the nightclub.

* * *

After leaving the club, Ventus and Team SLVR checked out the list given to them and started searching the areas that were closest to their location. "Okay, then. The locals say that this old apartment complex is where Redd Stone and Duncan Upaz used to live in before it became too bad for people to stay," Ventus said as he approached the teenagers after speaking to somebody across the street. "They'd probably stick around this place to keep some of their things or even hide from the cops."

"Yeah, that makes sense," Lapis remarked as she looked at the old building. "Think they might be in there now?"

"One way to find out," Silver said as he turned into his wolf form and walked up to the building. Entering through the open door, Team SLVR assisted Ven in searching the place for any sign of their bounty. Silver sniffed around for any sign of somebody else in the building before he picked up something. "Somebody else is here," he told the others before changing back to normal and lead them to a door. They saw that it was slightly open and that two males were watching television in silence. Pulling out his weapon and preparing the whip mode of it, Silver and the others turned to Ventus. "Alright, what do we do now," Silver asked.

"Charge 'em, now," Ventus practically screamed as he jumped into the room. Team SLVR was surprised at their instructor's actions, but Rua followed after him and helped fight the two other men in the room. Hearing grunts and swears, the rest of Team SLVR entered the room to see Ventus and Rua standing on top of Redd Stone and Duncan Upaz. "Two down, three to go," Ventus said as Silver used his weapon to tie up the criminals. "Let's bring these two back to the police."

* * *

In an old warehouse near the docks, a young male with gray hair approached a woman with black hair. "I've got some bad news, Nicole," the male said. "Duncan and Redd have been captured."

"Are you sure, Lloyd," Nicole asked.

"Yeah. Just as I was about to head over there and talk to them about what Clay wanted, I saw that a Huntsman and these Beacon Academy students were dragging them to the police station," he explained.

"Clay's not going to like this," Nicole said.

"No... I don't," a second male's voice replied, which made Lloyd and Nicole nervously turn around to see the man who spoke. The new male was 6'0" with a tanned muscular physique, brown eyes, and brown hair with two dark red streaks framing the right side of his face. He wore a light brown tank top with black designs that made his shirt resemble a clay doll of sorts, a pair of dark red pants with a black ribbon acting as a belt and orange flame patterns on the legs, and a pair of black combat boots. He also had a pair of gloves that left his thumbs and index fingers uncovered, as well as a piece of rope that he wore as a headband. "Care to take a guess?"

"N-no, Clay," Nicole said as she backed away from the man.

"We know exactly why you're unhappy, Crimson," Lloyd stated as he held up a wood plank to shield himself. Unfortunately for him, it was ineffective as Clay punched the plank in two. Panicking, Lloyd threw the pieces of wood away as if they would harm him if he held on any longer.

"You better," Clay Crimson told the two as he adjusted his gloves after the punch he threw. "So, it appears that we're being hunted for what we did recently... This will be a good opportunity to show just who those 'heroes' are messing with," Clay said with a smug grin on his face.

"What do you mean," Nicole asked.

"They don't know that we're expecting them," Clay stated as he lifted his right hand and positioned it like he was holding something. "I'd say that it's the perfect time to prepare for them." Placing his thumb on his index finger, the pieces of wood that Clay previously punched suddenly exploded and burning splinters flew throughout the room. "Nicole. Lucas. I'll prepare for our 'guests'. You two keep a lookout for them and be sure to tell me when they're coming by," Clay said before smiling smugly again.

* * *

 **Alright. With this chapter done, we've been introduced to Ventus and Team SLVR has started their bounty hunting mission. We've also got a bit villain that I wanted to come up with for a while, but haven't really reached a good point in the story to introduce him yet. Now that we have, we'll be in for a fight scene in the next chapter and I'll show off more of Ven's personality there.**

 **After the next chapter ends, I'll be showing Team FCSA's mission at the coastal village. In that, I got to thinking this one little thing. 'What if there were missions that overlapped each other such as one team working Village Security met up with a team doing their own job like Grimm killing or Search and Rescue?' In that one, I'll be showing off more than just Team FCSA. But for now, I'm going to focus on Ven and Team SLVR taking down Clay Crimson.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick out.**


	27. Flight of the Falcon

**Hey, everyone. WaterDragonMaverick here with the second part of Team SLVR's bounty hunting mission in "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, the four rookie Hunters met Ventus and they managed to catch two of their targets and turn them over to the police. However, the other three criminals soon found out that they were being targeted and they begin to set up for the 'visitors'. Will Team SLVR be able to succeed? How good is this Huntsman that's helping them? Are the five of them walking into a trap? Find out now on "Sideline: Another Story" and enjoy the chapter.**

 **Target Sighted.**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my personal Original Characters in this story.**

* * *

After handing Redd Stone and Duncan Upaz over to the Vale Police Department, Ventus and Team SLVR were paid for the two bounties and went on the find the other three wanted criminals. "Not a bad amount," Ven said as he counted the Lien he earned. "After this mission's over, let's get something to eat. All this work builds up an appetite," he told the teenagers.

"That would be great," Silver said. "Let's just try to deal with those last three people. Who are they again?"

"Lucas Lloyd, Nicole Blade, and Clay Crimson," Lapis reminded. "The last known location according to Junior's list was an old warehouse near the docks I believe."

Ventus looked at the list given to them before replying to the more studious member of Team SLVR. "You'd be right, Lapis. Clay Crimson is supposed to be the leader of their little group because he comes up with all the strategies for them and has the fighting skills to back them up."

"Sounds dangerous," Vixen said with a smile. "I think it'll be fun to deal with him."

"Vixen, don't even think about it," Rua told the prankster of the team. "We're bounty hunting."

"Let's just head off to the warehouse," Silver told his team. Listening to their leader, Team SLVR focused and went on their way while Ventus grinned at the teenagers.

* * *

At the docks, Nicole Blade and Lucas Lloyd were patrolling their hideout to keep an eye out for the Huntsman and Beacon Academy students that were going to arrive. With nothing in sight at the moment, the two began to talk with each other. "I really didn't want today to be like this," Lucas said to Nicole as they walked by some shipping containers.

"Neither of us did," Nicole replied. "But then again, you know Clay. He always thinks that he can do whatever he wants thanks to his skills."

"Yeah, he scares me," Lucas admitted.

"Same here," Nicole agreed. "He can turn whatever he touches into a bomb as long as it isn't alive or has anyone's Aura channeled through it. That's a terrifying Semblance. And he's the only one in our gang that has an ability of any sort, too."

Lucas only nodded before the two decided to climb on top of the shipping containers for a better view. When they reached the top, they continued their conversation. "At least we can fight, Nicole. If we couldn't hold our own against the cops, I think Clay would've killed us by turning our clothes into explosives a long time ago."

"Yeah," Nicole agreed. Soon, the black-haired girl saw something approaching the docks and she pulled out a pocket-sized telescope to get a better look. She soon saw that five people with weapons and armor were walking into the dockyard. "Looks like our Huntsmen guests have arrived," Nicole told Lucas.

"I'll go warn Clay," Lucas said as he began climbing down the shipping containers and headed for the warehouse. As for Nicole Blade, she pulled out a short sword and got ready to fight against the first person that came her way when she saw each of the arrivals splitting up to cover more ground.

* * *

When Ventus and Team SLVR arrived at the dockyard, they decided that splitting up and searching the area was the best option. Vixen was soon on her own as she tried to find any sign of the fugitives they were after. As she checked every corner and possible hiding spot, she had the strangest feeling that somebody or something was following her. Turning around, the Fox Faunus saw that a black-haired girl of average height was attacking her with a short sword. Quickly backflipping out of the way, Vixen pulled out her fans to try and counter against the girl. "Hey, what's up," Vixen asked as she saw the girl stare her down.

The girl didn't reply and only began to attack Vixen again with her sword. Blocking the slashes with her fans, Vixen countered by kicking at her opponent's legs before following up with a few strikes from her fans. Finishing her attack combination with a strong kick to the girl's gut, Vixen used her Semblance to create an illusionary swarm of beetles that distracted the girl long enough for the Faunus to pull out her Scroll. "Hey, I think I found that Nicole girl we were after," Vixen told her Team as she kept up her illusion. "Look for the giant swarm of bugs and you'll find me."

"Got it. Rua, head over there and help Vixen out," Silver's voice instructed.

Vixen soon saw a flash of light and saw that Rua Amaranth had arrived at her location. "Already there," Rua told her team and put away her Scroll. Preparing her shield as soon as Vixen's illusion stopped, Rua charged at Nicole and smashed the black-haired girl into a shipping container. After Nicole recoiled in pain, Vixen placed a pair of handcuffs on her. "Don't worry. I didn't hurt you that much," Rua told Nicole. "Now before I take you to the cops, tell us where the other two are."

* * *

"Clay! They're here," Lucas Lloyd called out as he found Clay Crimson. "I think that they might have caught Nicole."

"A shame," Clay stated without any sort of emotion in his voice.

Lucas wasn't all that surprised when he heard what Clay said, but it still hurt him to think of what Clay truly thought of his associates. "They'll be after us soon enough," Lucas reminded as his voice became more panicked. "We need to do something!"

"I already have, Lloyd," Clay said as he pointed to all the planks of wood, empty metal barrels, and other objects scattered around the room. "And if those don't cut it, I have these," he added while pulling out a handful of coins from his pocket. "I already have the advantage," Clay told his subordinate with a smug smile.

"Are you _really_ sure that you can take on _five_ people at once," Lucas asked out of concern.

"Do you doubt me," Clay asked back with an annoyed expression on his face as he walked toward Lucas. The gray-haired male backed away slowly in fear as Clay crept closer to him, but the latter managed to grab him by the collar of his shirt. "I was responsible for giving you what you wanted for months. If you're doubting my abilities and the idea, no... the _fact_ that I can take out some worthless teenage wannabe heroes, then I'll make it that it will be easier for them to find you," Clay threatened as he began to position his thumb over his index finger.

"I'm not! I'M NOT," Lucas cried out in fear as he looked at Clay.

"...Good," Clay said as he released Lucas from his grip. "Now, get out of my sight." Hearing the order, Lucas ran away from Clay as fast as he could. When Clay was alone, he looked at his hand and pondered something to himself. "I think he's served his purpose," Clay said and pressed his thumb against his index finger like he was activating a detonator. When he did, a small click was heard before an explosion sounded off and a pained scream echoed through the docks. After hearing Lucas Lloyd's voice call out in pain, Clay smirked to himself before he went to an old table and picked up a large revolver to load it with the bullets he needed.

* * *

"What was that," Lapis asked as she, Team SLVR, and Ventus regrouped after hearing the explosion and scream. Searching the location where the sounds came from, the Huntsman and the teenagers saw one of their targets, Lucas Lloyd, badly injured and his shirt burned to ashes. "What happened to him?!"

Ventus kneeled down and checked Lucas' vitals. "He's still breathing, but he needs to get medical attention. A hospital won't cut it, though," he said as he pulled out his Scroll and selected a specific contact. "It's me, Sis. I need you to help somebody we found injured at the docks. I'm sending one of the students that are shadowing me with them. Okay, see you then," he told the person on the other line before hanging up. "Rua, you need to take him to Beacon Academy."

"What?! Why take him there," Rua asked.

"Because there's somebody waiting at the courtyard who can help this guy faster than any hospital can," Ven explained. "Just do it." Listening to Ventus, Rua grabbed Lucas and teleported to Beacon Academy with him. The rest of Team SLVR was still confused before Ven spoke to them. "We still need to deal with Clay Crimson. I feel like he was responsible for this," Ven said. "Come on." Obeying their mentor, Silver, Lapis, and Vixen followed Ven until they reached the warehouse that Nicole Blade told them that Clay was hiding out at.

As they approached the door, a broken piece of wood was thrown out of the door's window and a small click was heard before the wood suddenly exploded. The blast sent burning splinters and nails flying at the group, but Lapis was quick to act and created a wall of ice to defend everyone. The heat from the explosion melted most of the ice wall, but everyone was safe and unharmed from whatever kind of shrapnel flew at them. "Since when does wood explode," Silver exclaimed in shock as a barrel rolled close to them from the blast.

"Simple," a male's voice called out from the warehouse. "I make it explode on command. Just like this will," they stated with a smug tone before another click was heard. Thinking of what the man said, Ventus kicked the barrel into the air and the metal container exploded a little after the Huntsman got it out of range. "I suppose that one of you isn't so clueless after all," the man said as he stepped into view, juggling some pebbles in his right hand while holding a revolver in his left hand.

"And I suppose that you're Clay Crimson," Ventus replied with an angry tone in his voice. "Why did you do that to Lucas Lloyd?"

"Him," Clay questioned as he stopped juggling the pebbles in his hand and turned to look at Ventus. "He did what I expected him to do and I dealt with him accordingly. It's not like he was actually going to fight any of you. Although now that I think about it, letting him find you would have been much easier for me to deal with every single one of you," the criminal stated.

Ventus and Silver glared at Clay's callous behavior toward his subordinate, but Ventus was angrier and Team SLVR could tell. "He helped you in the past, didn't he," Ven exclaimed to Clay.

"By playing lookout like he did earlier," Clay replied while holstering his gun. "However, he's only good for that and while he could defend himself in a fight, he was doubting my strengths," he told the bounty hunters in front of him. "I can easily take on all of you," Crimson stated as he threw the pebbles he carried at Team SLVR and activated his Semblance. With a press of his thumb and the sound of a detonator clicking, the pebbles effectively became firecrackers that distracted everyone so that he could attack Team SLVR.

Leaping at Vixen, Clay Crimson hit her in the face with a flying knee strike before kicking her in the ribs to knock her over. Seeing their teammate in trouble, Silver and Lapis rushed to help as they pulled out their weapons. Attempting to slash at Clay, Silver and Lapis didn't react in time when he pulled out his revolver and fired a bullet at them. Immediately when he did, Clay activated his Semblance to make to the bullet explode and damage the students. As Lapis went skidding onto the pavement from the blast, her Aura prevented her from being too injured by the shrapnel and fire, but still was recoiling in pain when she ended up crashing into Vixen. "You'll pay for that," Silver growled as he glared at Clay Crimson and used his chainsaw's whip mode to try and strike at the criminal. However, Clay countered by grabbing at a plank of wood and throwing it so that Silver's chain caught it. When Silver saw what he was doing, Crimson had a smug smile on his face as he used his Semblance again to create another explosion.

"Perhaps you children should stay in school and learn to stay out of fights that you can't win," Clay taunted as Silver went flying from the blast and skinned his arm against the ground. "Then again, wannabe heroes tend to die rather young," he added as he pulled out his revolver again and aimed at the downed Wolf Faunus. Before he could pull the trigger, Lapis let out a sonic scream directly at Clay and made him recoil in pain from the excruciatingly loud noise. Turning to the girl, Clay saw that dozens of copies of Team SLVR were staring him down as the Lapis clones all screamed at him. "Nice try, brats," Clay said as he fired his gun at the crowd of copies and activated his Semblance once more. With explosions enveloping the illusions that Vixen created, she and Lapis ended up getting knocked back into a shipping container, which broke their Auras and made their bodies flash a reddish-orange and silvery-blue respectively. "Now where was I," Clay rhetorically asked as he turned back to the struggling Silver.

Aiming his revolver at Silver again, Clay prepared to kill Team SLVR's leader and shot at the Wolf Faunus while pressing his free hand's thumb over his index finger again. When the explosion enveloped the area that he aimed at, Clay smirked at his apparent victory until he saw the smoke and flames clear. Seeing that no charred corpse was in the center of the blast zone, Crimson looked around until he saw Silver with Vixen and Lapis. But before he could try to shoot at them again, he was suddenly attacked and his chest was slashed at. Seeing the cut on his body and shirt, Clay investigated as to where the attack came from before he heard Ventus speak. "Your fight is with _me_ now," the Falcon Faunus said as he floated down to the ground like an angel descending from the heavens. When he landed, Ventus placed his goggles over his eyes and held his knife in a reverse grip in front of his belt buckle as a ready stance.

Clay just laughed smugly at Ventus as he reloaded his revolver. "Hahahaha! You really think that I can't deal with you after what I did to those three?" As Clay finished loading his weapon, Ven rushed the criminal at blinding speeds and slashed at him with his knife from several angles. During the onslaught of slashes, Clay's shirt was tattered and he had to remove it. "Eat this," Crimson exclaimed as he threw his tank top in Ven's direction when he saw the Faunus stop moving. Detonating the article of torn cloth with his Semblance, Clay tried to deal some damage to Ventus after the attacks that he took.

"I'm not hungry," Ven retorted as he swung his knife in front of him and his weapon unleashed a gust of wind. The sudden wind blew Clay's tank top back toward the fugitive as it exploded and managed to injure him. As Clay Crimson rolled back onto his feet from his Semblance being used against himself, he aimed and fired his revolver at Ventus. The Huntsman saw the attack coming easily and kicked again to fire his own bullets from his greaves. With precise aim from Ven, the bullets collided in midair which surprised Clay and Team SLVR before the criminal continued to shoot at the Falcon Faunus. "Too slow," Ventus said as he flew out of the way of the shots before grabbing at Crimson with his talons.

With Ven's talons digging into his shoulders, Clay cried out in pain before Ventus flipped and slammed him onto the ground hard enough to crack the pavement. Following through with his attack, Ven lifted Clay into the air and kicked at him to send the criminal flying with the force of his kick. When Clay recovered from the attack, he snarled at the Huntsman before getting into a fighting stance and charged at his opponent. Throwing a punch at Ventus, Clay's attack was deflected by the Faunus before Ven countered with a kick to the fugitive's kidneys. Ventus dealt a few more kicks to Clay before the latter figured out enough of Ven's way of fighting to block with his forearms or shins. "Not so tough now that I know how you fight," Crimson told Ventus as he hit the Huntsman in the face with an elbow strike that followed into a backhand.

Ven only replied by pushing Clay back with a kick and flying above him. With some room to breathe, Ven made it so that his greaves opened up to change what kind of ammunition he used and pulled a pair of Fire Dust crystals from a holder he kept in his jacket pocket. After placing the crystals in his greaves, Ventus lowered himself back to the ground and got into a kickboxing stance. As Clay approached Ventus with his arms raised for defense, the Falcon Faunus attacked with a fiery kick that Clay attempted to block, but the flames still dealt damage to his Aura. Kicking at Clay more, Ven managed to disarm him of his revolver when Crimson tried to shoot at him again. As Clay growled in anger at his opponent winning, he tried to punch Ventus again only for the Falcon Faunus to grab him by the arm and throw him to the ground. While the criminal tried to pick himself up, Ventus ascended into the sky and dived back down toward Clay like a real falcon attempting to catch its prey. Falling at high speeds, Ven flipped himself around in order to land an extremely powerful burning kick directly at Clay Crimson. The attack connected and the fugitive's Aura broke on contact before he was send flying into the water.

While Ventus went to collect his bounty, Silver and the girls were shocked at what they just witnessed. "That... was... awesome," Silver managed to say as he was helped to his feet by Lapis and Vixen.

"Yeah, it was," Vixen agreed.

"Okay, let's bring this guy to the cops and make sure to keep him in a small holding cell," Lapis stated. "His Semblance can still work on himself, so he likely wouldn't want to be injured in any possible escape he attempts."

"Good call," Ventus said as he carried Clay Crimson by his legs.

* * *

When they brought Clay to the police, Team SLVR saw that Rua and Ivy were waiting for them with Lucas Lloyd now apparently back to full health and being taken to a holding cell by an officer. "Hey, guys. What did I miss," Rua asked as she saw her team enter with a handcuffed Clay Crimson.

"While you were helping out that Lucas guy, Ven kicked ass," Silver exclaimed before pointing at Clay. "He was dealing with that bomber guy who was beating us like a cheap drum so easily that it didn't even seem like a fair fight!"

"That's Ventus for you," Ivy said as she turned to the Falcon Faunus. Ven saw her and just began to stammer and blush like a teenager.

"Hey, why are you even here, Ivy," Vixen asked as she turned to the Cow Faunus.

"I think this will help explain," Ivy said as she walked toward Silver and placed her hand on his injured arm. With a green glow coming from her hand, Ivy seemed to heal Silver's arm as the scrape started to vanish as if it was naturally healing at a much faster rate. "Terracotta taught me about Aura when we started dating and he even unlocked my own Aura for me. I soon found out that I could heal others through skin contact with my Semblance," Ivy explained as she removed her hand from Silver. "When Ventus called me about an injured man, he wanted me to help as soon as possible."

"That's why he wanted me to get Lucas to Beacon," Rua told her team.

"Wait, he said 'Sis' in his call," Lapis remembered. "Then..."

"Oh, right. My full name is Ventus Gaia," the Falcon Faunus said. "I'm Ivy's younger brother-in-law." The teenagers were confused as they processed the knowledge that Ventus was Terracotta's brother, but they looked nothing alike. "I was adopted," Ven bluntly stated to answer the question that was on Team SLVR's minds. Soon, the police chief came by to thank Ventus and Team SLVR for their hard work apprehending Clay Crimson and his gang. Receiving the payment for the job and declaring the mission a success, Ventus, Ivy, and Team SLVR all left the station. "Alright! I think that this calls for dinner," Ventus exclaimed and everyone agreed.

"I wonder how the others are doing," Lapis asked as she pulled out her Scroll and looked at a picture of Fragment Hunter altogether.

* * *

 **FINISHED! I wanted to get this chapter done in order to show off Ventus' fighting style and to get started with the next mission that I'm going to cover. I hope that you enjoyed the action in this chapter because the next mission is going to have plenty more and I'm introducing a new type of Grimm. As for Clay Crimson in this chapter, I always thought that the ability of "Killer Queen" from "Jojo's Bizarre Adventure" was awesome enough to be a Semblance in RWBY. So, there you go.**

 **Ventus' battle style is something that I picture being a slightly superior version of Mercury's fighting style by adding Dust-enhanced kicks, the ability to grab things with his feet, a Dust knife for hit-and-run tactics, and the power to fly without wasting Dust or ammo. The main downside of it though is that Ventus doesn't have the same defensive strengths as Mercury does. During his battle with Clay Crimson, I'd like you to listen to any of the following songs from "Kamen Rider OOO" for the fight scene. "Reverse/Re:Birth", "Regret Nothing ~Tighten Up~", or "Time Judged All". And yes, Ven did end the battle with his own personal 'Rider Kick', I've been watching several Kamen Rider shows recently and I've become a fan.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick out!**


	28. Port Mako

**Welcome to the next episode and next mission in "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Team SLVR and Ventus Gaia went bounty hunting and had to deal with a major threat in the form of Clay Crimson. Thanks to Ventus, Team SLVR's second mission was a success and they captured all the bounties they were tasked with getting. As for now, we'll be focusing on Team FCSA's first away mission as they visit a coastal settlement to help with Village Security. However, does this mission seem as easy as you would think?**

 **Off to a new adventure!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my own Original Characters**

* * *

"Well, I guess we'll see each other within the week," Azalea said to the rest of Fragment Hunter as she, Sunset, and Team SLVR all waved goodbye before going on their own ways. Azalea met back up with Team FCSA and their mentor, Lucifer Fujita, as they made their way to the Bullhead that they were going to take. "So, what's the name of the place we're going to, Father Fujita," the Cow Faunus asked.

"A fishing town called 'Port Mako' needs our assistance in providing security while another team deals with a Grimm that's been terrorizing the waters just outside of the area," Lucifer explained. "And if needed, we would probably be asked to give aid to the second team."

"Really? I wonder if we'll recognize them," Layla pondered before everyone heard a barking sound approaching them. "Is that Dante?"

"Looks like it," Azalea said with a smile as she and Team FCSA watched the large hunting dog run after them. "I think he wants to come with us," Azalea surmised as she scratched the mixed breed behind his ears. "Is that okay?"

Lucifer saw Azalea and her dog looking up at him with practically the same puppy-eyed expression on their faces. Chuckling a little at old memories of when Cereza was a child and asked to keep a stray kitten she found in the rain, the Huntsman priest spoke. "I don't see the harm in letting him come along," he said. As Azalea thanked Lucifer, Dante stood up and leaned against Lucifer to lick his face in gratitude. "Hahaha! Down, boy. We need to get going now." At the Huntsman's command, the dog stopped licking him and followed alongside Team FCSA until they reached the Bullhead that they would take to Port Mako. "Everyone on," Lucifer told the group and the teenagers boarded the airship with Dante and the Huntsman following behind them. With all six on, the Bullhead started to take off to the southwest.

* * *

After a while of flying, Lucifer, Dante, and Team FCSA heard the pilot speak to them. "Port Mako should be seen in a few minutes. Get ready for landing outside the village gates," the pilot told them. "I'll be back when I've been given the okay." Hearing that they were arriving at their destination, Team FSCA prepared their equipment for their landing strategies while Dante stretched out his legs and yawned.

"Now, the village is expecting us to ensure that we protect their residents," Lucifer explained. "There have been reports of a Grimm that has been spotted lurking around the waters near Port Mako. While our mission is to make sure the village is protected, there's nothing stopping us from aiding the one's assigned to hunt down the beast. Understand?"

"Yes, sir," Team FCSA replied while Dante barked to acknowledge the information given.

"We're approaching Port Mako," the pilot said. Everyone soon looked out the Bullhead to see a fishing village that looked bigger than Team FCSA expected. While they could see a number of piers and docks with old shacks nearby them, there was also plenty of newer and more recently-built homes within the town away from the crystal blue water. The teenagers could see that some workmen were fixing up a few of the older buildings, but a few places seemed to be damaged from what looked like a Grimm attack. "The gates are coming up," the pilot said as the Bullhead began to slow down.

Lucifer and the rest of the passengers saw the vehicle's doors open and the six took the first good chance they got to jump out of the vehicle. As all of them made their landings, the Bullhead headed back for Vale until it and the pilot were needed again. The residents of Port Mako saw the Bullhead and went to the village gates to go greet the visiting Huntsmen who would help with their request. "Thank you for coming to our aid," an old man who was clearly the village elder said to Lucifer as they approached one another.

"This is all in good faith," Lucifer said as he shook the elder's hand. "Now, if you were to please give us a little more information about our task? My daughter and her friends would probably like to know what exactly we should help with."

The elder sighed as he turned toward the village and asked everyone to follow him. "You see, Vale normally doesn't have to worry about attacks from aquatic Grimm because of the shallow waters near their harbors and at the island of Patch, but we've been having trouble with a young and very dangerous Grimm that has no real issue with the depth of the waters around here," the elder explained. "Not only that, but some different Grimm have been sighted around the same areas as the real plague upon our town and Hope Island."

"Hope Island," Slate questioned.

"It's a small island just off the coast of town. You can see it from any of the docks in Port Mako," the elder replied. "The youngsters all love to spend their time there having fun, but with the Grimm being spotted in the waters around here..."

"You're too scared of them getting attacked to let them go to the island until this whole thing is resolved," Cereza concluded.

"Correct, young lady," the elder stated. "While we'd be happy with you staying in town to look after everyone and help with repairs, our greater concern is that of the Grimm near Hope Island. Because the island is within our borders, it is _technically_ part of Port Mako, which makes it part of your job to make sure that it's protected."

"Understood," Lucifer said as he heard the elder. "Now, there's just the issue with where we should stay for the time we're here."

"If you want somewhere to sleep, the church on the east side of town is willing to shelter those who need it," one civilian said as they pointed in the direction of a small church.

"Thank you," Lucifer replied before turning to Team FCSA and Dante. "Come along. We need to drop off our bags."

* * *

After talking with the local priest, Lucifer and Team FCSA made sure to put their bags away in the quarters that they were given before they went to the harbor to discuss getting a vessel to take the group to Hope Island. Along the way, they encountered several children who were either curious about what they did as Huntsmen and Huntresses or they wanted to play with Dante. When the group reached the docks, Lucifer went to speak with anyone who had a boat for the voyage to the island. While Team FCSA waited, they saw Dante playing with a few local children who were trying to hug the large dog or climb on top of his back to ride him like a horse. Slate watched the children playing with Azalea's dog and chuckled to himself at the sight before turning to his team and seeing there was somebody missing. "Hey, where'd Azalea go," Slate asked.

Cereza and Layla looked around for themselves and tried to see where Azalea went. "I don't know," Layla said.

"I doubt that she went to find a boat for herself," Cereza remarked as she looked around the moderately busy pier. "We have to help this place, but I doubt she went to save Hope Island alone," she added as she looked out to the island. Just like the elder said earlier, Hope Island was visible from the pier and it wasn't a very large landmark. Sure, it was big enough to see from the mainland, but also too small to build any proper additions on. Hearing descriptions of the island from local teenagers and children, it seemed that Hope Island was turned into a child's exploration dream with all sorts of things for beginning adventurers to discover as well as enough room for older kids to sit back and relax. "I swear if she went to deal with this on her own..."

"What's going on with who," asked a familiar voice as the rest of Team FCSA saw Azalea with a few boxes in her arms. "If you were wondering where I went, I got snacks," she explained as she pulled a fish-shaped cake of sorts and took a large bite out of it. "There's a few stands on the dock that sells takoyaki and taiyaki! Have some!"

"Ta-what-y," Layla and Slate said in confusion as they saw what Azalea was eating.

Azalea swallowed what she had in her mouth before explaining further. "Takoyaki is basically a dumpling with octopus meat as the filling and taiyaki is a cute little fish-shaped pancake filled with stuff like red bean paste, chocolate, and sometimes even meat like pork," she said before taking another large bite out her current taiyaki. "Mmm, chocolate..."

"Those things have pork in them," Slate asked in wonder. Azalea was too busy eating to answer Slate, so she handed him one of the boxes she carried in her right hand for him to open. Seeing the fish-shaped cakes, Slate picked one up and tore it in half to see the insides of the one he chose were definitely filled with pork like the dumplings at the restaurant he and Azalea went to before. "Huh... Bet it tastes good," he said to himself before eating half of the snack food while Dante managed to swipe the other half from Slate's hand. "It does! Mmm... Tasty!"

"Hey, let me have some then," Layla exclaimed as she saw Slate grab two more to compensate for the piece Dante stole.

"Save some for your leader," Cereza playfully argued as she walked over to grab the other box from Azalea.

"Sometimes they even top them with ice cream," Azalea added when she finished her snack.

"How do you know so much about these," Layla asked.

"Whenever I visited Nashihana with my family, I always loved to get taiyaki and other food from stalls. Especially during festivals being held there," Azalea answered as she checked her wallet. Seeing that she had enough money for another order of food, she and Dante went to go get some.

When the girl and her dog reached the stand again, the bear-eared Faunus man running the stand laughed heartily when he saw her. "Well, seems that your friends are enjoying the food if you're back for extra, little lady," he chuckled.

"Yeah. Another special order of taiyaki, please," Azalea said as she gave a few Lien to the man.

"Coming right up," the Bear Faunus said as he and the other workers at the stand began to pour batter into a special set of pans to get the cakes in the correct shapes.

While she watched the cooks get to work on her order, Azalea didn't notice Dante looking around the dock and see somebody approaching one of his masters. Jumping at the person with a howl, Azalea and the stand workers heard a yell when the dog landed on someone. "Ah! Get off of me," a voice that Azalea thought sounded familiar exclaimed before she saw a head of spiky brown hair. When Azalea called the dog over, she saw that the person that Dante jumped on was Percival Ivory, who she met at Beacon Academy the day before the Breach in Vale. Percival stood up and dusted himself off before he saw the dog standing next to Azalea. "Hey, it's Azalea! What brings you here? Mission," Percival exclaimed before asking the girl.

"Yeah. Village Security," Azalea replied. "You?"

"Search and Destroy. Apparently, there's been a number of Grimm in the waters around here and I'm here to help out with my team," Percival replied. "So, this your dog?"

"Yeah, this is Dante," Azalea said.

Dante soon stood up on his hind legs and began to lick away at Percival's face. "Hahaha! Friendly guy, ain't he? Wanna be my bud," the feline Faunus said to the dog, who only barked in reply with a big smile on his face. "Alright, then. Give me your paw," Percival told the dog, who sat back down and obeyed. Shaking Dante's paw, Percival adjusted his grip before bumping his fist lightly against the dog's paw and tapped it like he did with Azalea before. He soon ended the handshake by bumping his fist and Dante's paw once more, then he lifted his hand for the hunting dog to place his paw against his palm. "Now, we're buds," Percival exclaimed as he started to scratch the dog's neck.

Azalea giggled at how Percival did his personal handshake with her dog before the taiyaki stand owner gave Azalea her order and change. "So, if you're here, where's the rest of your team," Azalea asked as she put her wallet in her pocket and carried her box of taiyaki.

"Oh, they're trying to find a ship for us to take over to where the Grimm where sighted," Percival explained. "But they've been talking with this Huntsman priest guy about arranging for us to take the same boat, so we need to get a bigger boat since there might be about nine of us."

"Ten, if you count Dante," Azalea said as she pulled out a taiyaki to give her recently-made friend.

"Thanks," he said as he accepted the treat and took a bite of it. After a while, Percival realized what Azalea said and was shocked at what he managed to put together. "What!? You're here with that priest guy?"

"Yeah. He's Cereza's dad and he's our mentor for this mission," Azalea told him. "Dante wanted to keep an eye on me, so he came with us." The dog barked twice as if to answer what Azalea said.

"Well then, looks like we'll be able to see how our teams do in battle before the Vytal Festival," Percival said with a big grin on his face. "This is going to be a blast," he exclaimed as he raised both arms in the air.

* * *

 **And with this chapter done, we're finished with the first part of Team FCSA's mission at Port Mako. I wanted to have this mission involve another team because of the idea of civilian rescue or protecting a town while other deal with Grimm hunting, so I'm bringing in Team PRDT to help Team FCSA and give the former some moments to show off before the Vytal Festival. It was either them or Team GLOW from Atlas with Maxwell and Raduga, but I'm still going through some final details for the Atlas team.**

 **When the next chapter is up, I'll be showing off the first of some aquatic Grimm I've been thinking of for Sideline as well as introducing the last member of Team PRDT. I'm a little excited to write up battle scenes involving Percival because I've only been showing his friendly and non-combatant side, so be ready to see more of him and the rest of his team in action when they help out Team FCSA.**

 **Until next time, everyone. WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	29. Valor At Sea

**Hello, readers. Welcome to the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Team FCSA headed off with Lucifer Fujita for Port Mako. On the way to the airship they were going to take, Azalea's dog, Dante, wanted to come along and has joined the group on their trip to the southwest. Reaching Port Mako, they drop off their belongings at a church that offers them a place to rest before Lucifer goes to charter a boat. While waiting, Azalea and Dante meet up with Percival Ivory from Shade Academy in Vacuo, who is on a Search and Destroy mission with Team PRDT. Looks like the two teams are going to be helping each other out as they deal with Grimm near Port Mako and the nearby Hope Island.**

 **Setting sail!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only characters I own in this story are of my own creation.**

* * *

Azalea walked over to Team FCSA with her order of taiyaki in hand while Dante and Percival were following her. "Hey, guys! Look who's here on a mission," the Cow Faunus girl called out to her friends. Looking over at her, they saw Percival Ivory waving at them while holding a taiyaki in his mouth like a cat stealing food. The image actually made Cereza stifle a laugh before the two Faunus and the dog arrived. "Team PRDT's here to help out the village on a Search and Destroy job," Azalea explained.

"Yuff! Thif iv gonna ve ahfome," Percival said, but he still had the cake in his mouth as he spoke. Realizing that nobody heard him, he placed the whole thing in his mouth and began to chew it up.

"We understood you enough, you dope," Layla told Percival. "So, where are Ebony and Jenny?"

Percival swallowed the snack before speaking again and explained where his team was. "Ebony, Jenny, and Twilight are all trying to help find a ship for heading out to Hope Island so that we can deal with the Grimm near there."

"Twilight? I don't think we've met her before," Cereza remarked.

"Normally she likes to just read when we aren't training or fighting," Percival said. "She even pulled out a book while we were waiting for the chance to get a boat. She's such an egghead."

"And what's wrong with that," a girl's voice sounded off as Percival and Team FCSA turned to see Ebony Rain and Jennifer Dawn with a third female who was carrying a large novel in her hands. She was 5'3" with a slim figure and pale skin, had straight black hair that fell to the center of her back with streaks of purple and pink color, and wore a simple pair of glasses over her violet-colored eyes. She wore a lavender-colored blouse with a red ribbon on the collar, a knee-length skirt that was half-pink and half-purple with a red belt and ammo pouch, and a pair of purple sneakers with pink socks. The new girl also carried a pair of wind and fire wheels on her belt with what looked like pistols built into them. Upon closer inspection of the girl, Team FCSA saw that she had an emblem on her ammo pouch, the sides of her skirt, and on her weapons. The symbol resembled a rose with a thorny frame that was in the shape of a sun or a star. "I happen to enjoy a good book whenever I get the chance."

"Yeah, but you pretty much _only_ brought books with us when we came to Vale," Ebony commented.

"Next time we travel, try and limit yourself, bookworm," Jenny added with a teasing smirk.

As the bespectacled girl of Team PRDT pouted, Percival gave introductions. "This is Twilight Roseus, the final member of Team PRDT and the smartest one out of the four of us."

"Thank you for saying that, Percival," Twilight said with a satisfied smirk while she adjusted her glasses by the bridge.

"She's also a massive dork who needed friends when she joined Shade Academy last year," Percival added with a playful laugh. Not appreciating what her leader said, Twilight held her book in one hand and brought the spine down on Percival's head with a painful chop. "OW! Every time," Percival whined as he rubbed his head before trying to fix his hair.

"Then you should know to not say things like that. Bad friend," Twilight scolded Percival like she was training a puppy.

While Team FCSA watched Percival get treated like a misbehaving pet, Lucifer Fujita stepped into sight in order to speak with the teenagers. "I see that you've met the team that has been asked to deal with the Grimm. The fact that all of you are acquainted makes it easier for each of us," Lucifer said. "I managed to acquire a ship for the mission, so all of you get ready for the voyage to Hope Island." Hearing the news, Team FCSA and Team PRDT all had the same determined look in their eyes as they prepared to head off.

* * *

Out in the water, a moderately large fishing vessel with harpoon guns and a few cannons for defending against Creatures of Grimm was taking the two teams out to the last known sightings of the monsters. As most of the teenagers and the dog were enjoying the ride, Lucifer was speaking to the ship's captain while a young Rhinoceros Beetle Faunus steered the boat. "Thank you again for helping us," Lucifer told the captain.

"Oh, it's no problem," the rugged captain said as he adjusted his hat. "If none of you Huntsmen came when you did, I probably would have gotten some of the other fishermen to help me hunt those Grimm down anyway."

"Well, I suppose that it's a sign that we did get hear when we did," Lucifer remarked. "Especially with one of _those_ out in these waters," he added with a foreboding tone.

"Yeah... you would expect them in deeper waters," the captain as he crossed his arms over his chest. "But, rumors say it was young enough to not be bothered by the shallow depths near Port Mako and Hope Island."

"As long as you Huntsmen and Huntresses are here with the captain to help us out, the 'Valor' is going to be just fine," said horned helmsman. "We've gone on several dangerous voyages for a big catch and we've come back alive every time."

"Your crew must be in God's favor if you've been able to survive the seas like you have been," Lucifer commented as he placed his hand on his bible. Looking up from the book, the Huntsman saw that Slate was experiencing some problems. "Oh dear..."

"Are you alright, Slate," Azalea asked out of concern for her teammate and partner.

"Yeah... It's just that... Ugh... I got to Beacon by _air_ ship," Slate tried to explain, but he was feeling nauseous. "I'm just not... good with..." The gunslinger was moaning too much to speak clearly, but everyone could tell that Slate was getting a little seasick.

"Don't worry, cowboy. You just need to have a drink and some medicine," one of the crew members said as they inspected one of the harpoon guns. "When you get your sea legs after a while on this boat, you'll be ready to deal with those Grimm."

"Here you go," Jenny said as she handed Azalea a can of ginger ale and some pills for Slate.

Opening the can for Slate, Azalea gave her crush the beverage as she helped him sit upright. "Here, Slate. Drink up," she said in a motherly tone that Layla and Cereza immediately compared to Ivy. When Slate managed to keep his drink and the medicine down, Azalea smiled before she and Dante looked out to the water. "Have you ever wanted to ever have a little place to call your own as a kid?"

Everyone was surprised by Azalea's question, but they all gave it some thought. "There was this old lighthouse near my home that I liked to spend time around," Layla said. "Why bring this up, Lea?"

"When I was a kid, I didn't really have the kind of hangout like those kids in town see in Hope Island," Azalea explained. "They see this amazing island getaway from all the noise around their town to just go around and explore, catch bugs, and just enjoy themselves. It's something that I would have wanted if I didn't go to Sanctuary Academy."

"I thought that you hated bugs," Cereza brought up. "Rapier Wasps, centipedes, beetles, cockroaches," she listed with a shudder at the last word, indicating that she wasn't fond of that particular insect.

"I like some beetles," Azalea remarked. "Some of them are really cool looking and fun to collect. It's even a common pastime in areas around Anima. I also love butterflies and fireflies. They're so pretty when you see them in groups. It's just that I don't like anything that can sting me or poison me."

"Those types of Grimm must be a real problem for you," Twilight remarked as she looked up from her book. "Lancers, Death Stalkers, Night Crawlers... what other insectoid Grimm are there," she listed before putting her first book away and found another one about the various types of Grimm. "There has to be more, but I just can't remember off the top of my head."

While Twilight searched through her book, Ebony's bat ears twitched and she turned out to the water. Looking out at the water, she saw some black fins with white edges on the front gliding along the water's surface. "We've got company," Ebony exclaimed for everyone to hear before she pulled out her weapon. Aiming her shield's rifle at the water, the Bat Faunus took aim and fired a shot at one of the creatures.

Nailing it in right next to its fin, the attacker leaped out of the water for everyone to see fully as it let out a cry of pain and anger. It was a Grimm that resembled a large black shark with white bone plating along its back and near its red gills. The aquatic monster's back armor was segmented for more flexible movement, its fins all had a white edge on them, and the insides of its mouth were the same burning red and yellow as its eyes. "Threshers! You always see them out in deep enough waters," the crew member exclaimed as they aimed one of the harpoon guns at the Creature of Grimm. Launching the harpoon at the monster, the Thresher swam in another direction to dodge the attack before charging at the ship again. Ramming into the boat with the speed of a torpedo, the Valor was knocked around and everyone onboard had to keep themselves steady.

"Looks like it's our time to shine," Layla said as she pulled out Djinn Desire and aimed the lamp-shaped gun at the first fin she saw swimming toward the ship. Firing a bullet, it seemed that the shark-like Grimm's armor deflected Layla's attack. "Okay, so that won't work immediately."

"Aim for their sides, underbelly, or inside their mouths," Jenny explained as she loaded a clip of Electric Dust ammo into her weapon and aimed at a Thresher when it let out a gurgling tiger-like roar. Shooting the Dust ammo into the monster's mouth, Jenny managed to easily handle the first of the Threshers and smirked to herself before checking the rest of the pack. "We've still got seven more left. Everyone find one and take it out!"

"You heard her, everyone! Let's move," Percival told everyone with authority in his voice. "I'm going to see if the crew needs help."

"I'll come help," Azalea declared as she followed the second-year Vacuo student. "Dante! Defend," she told the dog. Obeying her, Dante's brown eyes flashed green and a bubble-shaped barrier of the same color formed around the ship's deck before expanding outward to knock several leaping Threshers back into the water. As Dante did this, everyone with a gun started to open fire on the Grimm while they were still out of the water.

The Threshers that landed in the water began to swim back around to try and attack the Valor again. But this time, they swam at full speed only to swiftly turn and unleash a blade of water pressure in the form of a crescent-shaped wave. The 'beam' hit the Valor and shook everyone around on the ship before one of the weakened Grimm was nailed in the eye and killed by one of Ebony's shots. "Six left," the Bat Faunus called out as she took aim at another one.

While Team FCSA and Team PRDT were dealing with the Threshers from the deck, the Valor's crew was busy dealing with any damage to the ship and attempting to help by firing harpoons or cannonballs at the shark Grimm. One of the crew members was aiming a cannon at a Thresher that was charging at the boat to try and bite the hull. "Smile, you son of a..." The blast from the cannon he fired cut off the last word, but the cannonball managed to kill off the Thresher before it could deal any more damage. "Wahoo! Another one down, Captain," the crewman said through the ship's communication system.

"Good job," the captain congratulated. "Don't get cocky, though. We're not out of this yet."

"I'll go help the others on deck," Lucifer said as he left the cabin, only for Azalea and Percival to take his place.

"Anything we can do," Percival asked.

The helmsman soon made a sharp turn and the Valor changed course to dodge two Threshers that were about to attack with more water blades. While the turn helped avoid the Grimm, it also sent most of the unprepared fighters tumbling around. Slate ended up catching onto a rail before his seasickness caught up with him and he bent over the railing with a loud retching noise coming from him. "I hate boats," he weakly muttered before seeing that he vomited on a Thresher. Avoiding the Grimm's vertical leaping bite, he unleashed a barrage of bullets into the Grimm's unarmored belly and managed to kill it. "How many is that," he asked as collapsed onto the deck and Dante stood guard over him.

Ebony counted up the remaining fins she saw and relayed it to the others. "There are only four more Threshers here," she said before she saw two harpoons skewer an incoming Grimm and pulled in opposite directions to rip it apart. Looking at where the harpoons came from, Ebony saw Azalea and Percival were the ones aiming the ship's weapons and they both held up a thumb when Ebony looked in their directions. "Make that three!"

"Soon to be zero," Cereza said as she and Layla stood side-by-side. "Blood Moon!" When the leader of Team FCSA gave the command, Layla used her Semblance to lift up one of the larger Threshers so that she and Cereza could slash and shoot away at the Grimm. Using her Semblance on an object the size of something like the Thresher normally put enormous strain on Layla's mind and Aura, but it was much easier thanks to all the training she and Fragment Hunter have been doing for the Vytal Festival. With one final kick from Cereza, the Grimm was sent flying into another Thresher, which injured the second monster when the sharp fins stabbed into its body. "Two more remaining," Cereza called out to everyone.

Seeing the injuries that Cereza and Layla dealt to one of the Threshers during their team attack, Twilight kept track of the Grimm and fired her weapon's guns at the monster. With the Thresher goaded into attacking her and leaping at the Valor, Twilight looked around and saw one of the spare cannonballs next to her. Placing her hand near the weapon, a glowing light purple glyph with her emblem in the center formed between her palm and the projectile. When the glyph stopped glowing, the emblem appeared on the cannonball and it began to levitate. Throwing out her arm, Twilight seemed to will the cannonball into flying at the Thresher. Moving her hand around at various angles, the cannonball followed the same paths to strike the Grimm repeatedly until Twilight had the projectile enter the Thresher's mouth and snapped her fingers to make the cannonball explode violently.

With the Grimm's head taken off from the explosion, Twilight felt satisfied with herself until she heard Ebony and Jenny warn her about something. Turning around, she saw that the final Thresher was lunging right at her at full speed and screamed in panic before knives appeared all around its vulnerable areas. As the knives pierced through the Grimm's body, it fell down to the ground and evaporated to signal the Thresher's death. While Twilight was confused about what just happened, Lucifer began to collect his knives as he lectured the girl. "Never assume that you're finished when you defeat a single enemy. There may be more around," Lucifer stated. "I thought that a second-year student would know by now."

"I-it caught me by surprise, sir," Twilight sheepishly replied as she adjusted her glasses.

"There's no shame in admitting your faults," Lucifer gently said. "They'll help you grow as long as you learn from them."

As the Valor corrected its course, the two teams were celebrating their victory against the Threshers. "We kicked butt! Who else wants some," Percival exclaimed out to the water. Suddenly, the water began to ripple and rise in front of the ship which caught everyone's attention as they also heard a loud bellowing cry that sounded similar to a bull, elephant, and tiger all mixed together. "What is that," Percival asked as everyone saw something emerge from the water.

"My god," the helmsman said as he looked at the creature in front of the Valor.

"It's here," the ship captain said as he glared at the beast. "The Leviathan..."

* * *

 **Cliffhanger time! I wanted to show off the Grimm I had planned out for aquatic missions or sea voyages because of the Sea Feilong in Volume 4. The first was a typical shark-like Grimm called Threshers that I wanted to make my own attempt at. Yes, they are named after thresher sharks, but they would resemble Great White Sharks more.**

 **I also wanted to show off some skills with Team PRDT such as Twilight's Semblance (which I will explain in a later chapter) and Ebony's enhanced hearing as a Bat Faunus. I'm also going to show off Percival's capabilities in combat next chapter, so be ready to see what happens!**

 **What exactly is this creature that the ship captain called 'The Leviathan'? Will our heroes be able to beat it? Will they save Hope Island and Port Mako? Or will the Valor sink to the bottom of the sea? Find out next time on "Sideline: Another Story"!**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	30. Despair and Hope

**Welcome back to "Sideline: Another Story". When we last left off, Team FCSA and Team PRDT fought off Thresher Grimm that wanted to attack their ship, the Valor. After dealing with them, a newer and bigger Grimm that the Valor's captain calls 'The Leviathan' has shown up. It seems that our heroes are in for a new fight against a literally bigger threat. Let's see how they do!**

 **BTW, in the previous chapter's battle, just play any music you believe is appropriate for fighting at sea. I don't have any actual suggestions, so just go wild.**

 **Switch On!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only characters I own are the ones of my own creation.**

* * *

"It's here," the Valor's captain said as he glared at the beast emerging from the water. "The Leviathan..." Rising up from the water was a big Grimm while the body of an orca whale, had the jaws of a crocodile, and was covered in barnacle-like bone plating. The Grimm let out a bellowing cry that sounded similar to a bull, elephant, and tiger all mixed together. When it did, the air around the area became much colder and everyone on the Valor could see their breath. The Leviathan glared at the ship with burning eyes before it let out a deep drone toward the ship, which made Ebony cry out in agonizing pain as she attempted to cover her ears.

"Make it stop! Make! It! Stop! Arrrrgghhh," Ebony screamed as she flailed around the ship.

"What's wrong with her," Azalea asked out of concern.

"It's the Leviathan's call," Lucifer said. "Leviathans are Grimm that are normally found in deeper seas, but this one is young enough to not be bothered by the shallower waters. They can let out a sonic blast that can cripple anyone within hearing range," the Huntsman explained. "Because of Miss Rain's Faunus trait, she's much more vulnerable to the Leviathan."

"We need to get her out of here," Slate said as he managed to stand up. "I'll take her below deck. Besides, unless we get on dry land, I don't think I'll be that much help until I get used to boats." Slate soon picked up Ebony as she fell to the floor and carried her inside. However, he was stopped by Azalea who was still worried about Slate himself. "I'll be fine, Freckles. In fact, I think the medicine is starting to work a little... If I didn't throw it up onto that Thresher earlier," he said and muttered the last part to himself.

Azalea smiled and gave Slate a small kiss on the cheek before he went inside the Valor. Joining the rest of Team FCSA and Team PRDT, Azalea stared down the Grimm. The Grimm felt the emotions of the people on the ship and began to swim toward the Valor. As the Leviathan dived under the water, the captain turned to the beetle-horned helmsman. "Full speed forward! It's going to try and hit us from below!" Listening to the captain, the helmsman floored the accelerator for the boat and after a few seconds, the Leviathan ended up surfacing on the other side of the Valor snapping its jaws as it attempted to bite the ship in two. As the Grimm slowly turned around to see where the Valor was, the crew of the ship began to load the harpoons and cannons. "Fire," the captain ordered and the ship's weapons all fired at the Leviathan. The harpoons barely fazed the monster, but the cannonballs managed to crack off some of the Grimm's bony barnacle-like armor. "Barely a scratch," the captain muttered before the Leviathan finished turning toward the fishing boat.

The beast opened its jaws and released a large stream of mist toward the Valor. When the mist cleared, everyone saw that the water around the boat was frozen and sheets of ice were scattered around. Soon, Slate came back up onto the deck of the Valor to see what was going on. "Guys, what's happening? And why is it so freezing out here," the gunslinger of Team FCSA asked as he began shivering.

"Th-h-hat G-G-G-Grimm f-f-f-froze the water," Layla explained as she was shivering worse than Slate. "Th-his is one of the only d-d-d-downsides-s-s-s to growing up in V-V-V-Vacuo. Y-Y-Y-You're not us-s-s-sed t-to the c-c-cold in the d-d-d-d-day."

"Ironic given that you two tend to use Ice Dust whenever possible," Cereza remarked.

"W-we shoot ice at enem-m-mies, not make swords out of it," Slate reminded as he hugged himself to try and keep warm.

"Either way, I hope that you guys can keep your balance on ice," Jenny said as she jumped off the boat and landed on a sheet of ice with Azalea and Cereza following her. Slate decided that trying to stay balanced on the ice was better than staying on the boat, so he joined the girls on the ice while Twilight and Layla stayed onboard the Valor.

"If this thing is using ice, it probably won't like heat," Twilight hypothesized. "Try using as much Fire Dust as you can," she told the others as she loaded the ammunition into her guns. Layla used the Fire Dust in her jewelry to not only heat herself up, but also get ready to attack the Leviathan. Slate and the rest of the girls prepared their Fire Dust just as the Leviathan began to charge at them. Sending burning bullets, fireballs, and streams of flame at the Grimm, the teenagers barely managed to harm the Grimm, but did manage to make it retreat underwater. "I'm not sure if that worked," Twilight said as she watched the water move around. "Ebony's rifle would have really come in handy about now."

"Well, she's out for a while," Percival reminded. "That's why we have to take this thing down! Nobody hurts _any_ of my friends," he said with a growl.

As the Leviathan was underwater, it turned to face the underside of the Valor and its barnacle-like armor began to twitch and move. The 'barnacles' soon twisted around to reveal drill-like points and were soon aimed at the ship. Firing the pieces of its armor, the Leviathan managed to damage the ship a little as well as nail a few ice floes it created for the Huntsmen. Soon, the barnacles began to spin around to drill holes in what they hit and try to sink the ship. "We need to get off this ice floe," Cereza instructed as she and Azalea skated across the ice while Jenny and Slate used their weapons to get onto the ship or another sheet of ice.

Soon, everyone saw Lucifer holding one of the barnacles from the Leviathan for everyone to see. "It's sacrificing its armor to try and sink the ship," he told them before slashing the barnacle into pieces with his glaive. "That means it will be more vulnerable if you can hit it." Soon, the Leviathan released another stream of mist to freeze the water before it crashed through the ice. Leaping over the Valor, it destroyed another portion of the ice around it and sent chunks of ice colliding into the boat.

"With that thing in the water, we can't even get a clean hit in anyways," Layla stated.

Percival looked around and saw something out in the distance. "Maybe we _can_ hit it," Percival said as he jumped off the boat and landed on the same ice floe as Azalea. "Azalea, I have a plan and I could use your help with it." Whispering his plan to the Cow Faunus, Azalea nodded in agreement as she had Gladion at the ready. "Alright then. Let's settle this," Percival yelled at the Leviathan to catch its attention. The Grimm began to swim toward Percival and fired more of its barnacles at him, but he just smirked at the attack. His right arm soon glowed with an ivory-colored Aura before a bone-like spike emerged from his forearm and his used it to slash at the barnacles that came flying at him. "Like that's gonna work on me," he told the Leviathan like it could understand him.

The Leviathan roared at Percival only for Azalea to throw a fireball into the Grimm's mouth to damage it from the inside. "Bet that you can't catch us," Azalea taunted. After the Leviathan recovered from the injury, it began to swim toward the two Faunus at full speed while chomping away at the ice. Azalea switched Gladion's setting to use Ice Dust and created a long path for her and Percival to take so they would reach the nearby Hope Island. After the path was made, Percival's feet soon began to glow the same ivory color as his arm did and more bone-like blades appeared under his feet. Carrying Azalea in his arms, the 'bones' on Percival's feet began to move like motorized wheels and the two zipped away toward the island at high speed. "You're Semblance is so cool, Percy," Azalea said as she continued to use her Gladion baton to solidify their path.

"Thanks! It's a pretty simple power, but it's all about how you use it," Percival told Azalea. "Wait, Percy," he exclaimed after realizing the nickname Azalea gave him. Hearing the Leviathan behind them, Percival didn't give the nickname much thought and only continued toward the island while either dodging barnacles or shooting them down by firing more spikes from his back. "We're almost there," Percival said as he and Azalea saw Hope Island in the distance. Hope Island had sandy beaches, a large forest with a gargantuan tree in the center of the island, and there were wooden constructs like bridges and treehouses around the area.

With their destination just a few more yards away, Percival put Azalea down and the two ran for the island with the Grimm chasing after them recklessly. When they set foot on the beach, the Leviathan roared before it blasted more mist at the Faunus. Unlike the first instances, the mist condensed in the air and became flying shards of ice that began to fall on the beach like a hailstorm. As Azalea and Percival defended themselves from the ice with their weapons, the Leviathan let out a deep drone like when it first surfaced to try and harm the Faunus. "Go further into the island," Azalea shouted as the drone started to affect her hearing and she believed the same thing was happening to Percival. As the two students attempted to escape the Leviathan's sonic attack, the Valor opened fire on the Grimm and managed to deal significantly more damage to the whale-like monster.

While the Leviathan recoiled in pain from the cannons, the members of Team FCSA and Team PRDT opened fire on the beast with their ranged weapons to deal constant damage. Azalea and Percival saw what was happening from the forest on the island and they nodded in agreement at what they needed to do. Percival went first and used his Semblance to create five spikes on his right leg, which he sent flying at the Leviathan like missiles with a stomp of his foot. As the spikes struck the Grimm, it roared in immense pain before Percival threw Azalea into the air and jumped up soon after. With the two Faunus in the air above the island, Azalea set Gladion to use Wind Dust and unleashed a gust of wind that sent the two of them flying directly at the Leviathan. Percival soon covered his left leg in a large bone spike that began to spin like a drill. "Eat this," he shouted as he adjusted himself so that he would hit the Grimm with a flying kick.

Just as Azalea and Percival flew forward at the Grimm, Lucifer saw what they were doing and activated his Semblance with several feathers emerging from his body as he did. Just like Cereza, Lucifer had his own 'Time Mirage' that allowed him to slow down time for better defense and counterattacks. But thanks to his years of experience as a Huntsman, Lucifer's usage of his Semblance allowed him to slow down time even greater than his daughter at her current level. Lucifer's personal Time Mirage allowed him to stop time for a few seconds as long as he didn't come into physical contact with any person or animal that wasn't a Creature of Grimm. Running toward the Leviathan across the water thanks to the ice and time being stopped, Lucifer pulled out his glaive and began to recite a page from his bible by memory. "O demonic creature seeking the darkness of man, your reign over these seas shall end. Your maw bares the red fangs of envy as you are bound to the water, unable to strike on the land. The very sight of you instills madness among men who have lost everything dear and refuse to accept what they have. The despair you create shall give way to new hopes and light that will shine down upon those who deserve it. The shadows you were once born from will disappear with the rise of the sun and everything you have inflicted will be restored to their former glory."

With a powerful swing of his glaive, Lucifer sent the Leviathan flying up into the sky with the most vulnerable part of its body exposed for Percival and Azalea to strike at it when he ended his Time Mirage. With Percival's drill kick striking at the Grimm, Azalea soon joined with a powerful kick of her own and the two Faunus managed to pierce through the Leviathan's body. Drilling through completely, Percival and Azalea watched as the Grimm began to evaporate in midair before it landed on the beach and faded into nothing. The two laughed and whooped in celebration before they were caught by Layla's telekinesis and brought onboard the Valor. "That was awesome," Percival and Azalea shouted together as they landed on the boat and did Percival's secret handshake. "We just took out a Leviathan!"

"I can't wait to tell the others," Azalea exclaimed with the biggest grin on her face imaginable while Dante leaned up against her. "I know I couldn't have done it on my own, but that was just incredible!"

"I'll say it was," Cereza remarked with a smirk. "That was bloody amazing!"

"I would have to agree on how much of a feat that was for even first-year students," Lucifer said as he reached the boat and looked at the setting red sun. "I believe that it's getting late. We should return to Port Mako now and rest at the church."

"Yeah, that's like a great idea," Slate agreed.

"Port Mako, here we come again," the Valor's captain said as the helmsman turned the boat around.

* * *

As Team PRDT and Team FCSA rested up at Port Mako's church, they were enjoying a feast given to them by the grateful villagers. With plates upon plates of seafood, fruits, vegetables, and deserts, the warriors all chowed down on their first reward and discussed quite a number of things. Team FCSA talked about the initiation test for Beacon and how they worked together with Team SAFR to kill a King Taijitu, about Layla and Slate's families back home in Vacuo, and even talked about being bodyguards to Bianca Coloratura. "You guys actually did that," Team PRDT exclaimed in surprise.

"Yeah. Bianca's an old friend of Azalea and they've caught up with each other while we helped the pop star out," Layla said.

"Man, I love her music," Twilight said as she grabbed an apple to eat. "My favorite song of hers would have to be her cover of 'Gold'. I looked up the song and found out that it used to be a lullaby."

"Oh, it is," Azalea confirmed. "My mom used to sing it to us all the time when we had sleepovers at my family's place. Moving on, what's your family like, Percy?"

"Percy," the girls of Team PRDT said in pleasant surprise at the nickname for their leader.

"Well, my dad's a Rhino Faunus, but I don't really know who my mom is," Percival told the others. Everyone was surprised by this information, but Percival continued speaking. "Dad said that Mom was a Huntress and she spent all her time traveling around. She ended up meeting him in Vacuo one time and they 'enjoyed each other's company'. About a year later, I was born and handed off to my father because she couldn't take care of me." Percival looked out to the starry night sky and sighed a little. "I want to know who she is, but even my father didn't know much about her aside from the fact that she was a Gecko Faunus. I think I signed up to become a Huntsman just so that I could probably get a chance to meet her. But until then, I'm just going to enjoy helping out everyone I meet and make them my friend!"

The others were amazed at how well Percival seemed to take not knowing his own mother. He just explained his story calmly and with a smile on his face, accepting that it was something he couldn't change and he decided to keep moving forward. If he ended up meeting the woman who gave birth to him, then that was a chapter in his life he would eventually get to. "That's deep, man," Slate commented before taking a bite out of his taiyaki.

"Yeah," the rest of Team PRDT agreed.

"What about your Semblance? How did you first discover it," Azalea asked in order to lighten the mood a little.

"Oh, well I was training with my dad. He's not a Huntsman, but when you grow up in Vacuo, you need to learn how to fight. Either that, get somebody to protect you, or just be street smart," Percival began to explain and Slate nodded at the last thing the feline Faunus said. "Dad was throwing me around left and right before I tried to fight back with my claws. He told me that Huntsmen use their Aura to defend and attack, so I tried to focus it. Soon after, I made these spikes show up on my arm. After a while at Shade Academy, I learned that I could move them like I can now and I've been using them for all sorts of things," he said as he created a small spike and removed it from his hand to use it as a fork. "You'd be amazed at what I'll be capable of in the Vytal Festival."

"Oh, no doubt about it," Layla agreed. "But, I'd be on the lookout for the others if I were you. You've seen us fight, but are you sure you guys can take on Team SLVR or Team SAFR?"

While Cereza, Slate, and Layla bantered with Team PRDT over who could accomplish what during the upcoming Vytal Festival, Azalea petted Dante and looked out the window. Gazing out at the starry night sky, Azalea had one thing on her mind just as she saw a shooting star fly across the horizon. " _I wonder how the others are doing?_ "

* * *

 **And with this chapter finished, Team FCSA's mission in Port Mako was a success! We've seen how well they and Team PRDT can take out Grimm and fight alongside each other, so there's no question that Team PRDT are some great allies to have in the future. I wanted to come up with the idea of a Grimm Leviathan for a while, so I managed to figure out a basic design for it to put in here. Anyone who liked the battle with it is free to draw up what they envision the beast to look like based on the description I gave it.**

 **Admittedly, Percival's backstory with his parents was last minute as I thought of some other characters I had planned out. You'll probably be able to meet Percy's mom later in the story, but let's just focus on the rest of the missions (or mission, in this case).**

 **When picturing Hope Island, just imagine a less tropical version of Destiny Islands from Kingdom Hearts.**

 **As for music for this chapter, listen to the Boss Battle theme from "Shantae: Half Genie Hero" during the encounter with the Leviathan. When Percival and Azalea start their plan to defeat the monster, I recommend the theme of Kamen Rider Fourze, "Switch On", because I based much of Percival's personality on Gentaro Kisaragi, the title character of KR Fourze.**

 **Next time, Team SAFR and Aurora Celeste make their way to Forever Fall and Garrison Academy. But what sort of Grimm will they be handling when they get there? Find out when "Sideline: Another Story" gets another update!**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick out!**


	31. Garrison Academy

**Hello everyone! WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Team FCSA and Team PRDT worked together to defeat the Leviathan terrorizing Port Mako. After returning to the town, they celebrated a hard-fought victory and learned more about Percival Ivory. Now with Team SLVR and Team FCSA's missions completed, we only have one more team out of Fragment Hunter to cover before they reunite for extra training between now and the Vytal Festival. In this chapter, we'll be seeing what Team SAFR gets into while they visit Garrison Academy outside of Forever Fall.**

 **Life goes on! Anything goes!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my own Original Characters featured in this story**

* * *

"Well, I guess we'll be seeing each other within the week," Azalea said to the rest of Fragment Hunter as she, Sunset, and Team SLVR all waved goodbye before going on their own ways. Sunset went on to catch up with her team and Aurora Celeste, making sure that she checked on something that she was keeping in her pocket. Reaching into her jacket, she felt something crawl onto her hand and she gently pulled out her pet gecko, Phoenix. Letting the lizard nuzzle against her cheek, Sunset placed the pet back into her jacket and the two caught up with their group.

"I'm sure that you're excited to show your old school off to your friends, Sunset," Aurora remarked with a smile when Sunset began to walk beside her.

"Of course, I am," Sunset replied. "But, we still have Grimm to fight. I wonder what they are? If they're Night Crawlers, I really don't want to deal with them alone," she added with a shudder when she mentioned the centipede-like Grimm.

"I can understand an aversion toward a certain type of Grimm," Aurora remarked. "You said that your friend Azalea was afraid of Rapier Wasps and stinging insects, so Lancers and Death Stalkers would be troublesome for her."

"She also didn't like seeing the Pendra in class," Vinyl added as she briefly jumped into the conversation.

Sunset nodded before Aurora continued. "There are some cases in a person's life that they were attacked by Grimm that they could be triggered by the sight of something that reminds them of it," Aurora stated. "There was this one incident when my team and I were a few months into our first year at Beacon and we went on a mission that made us lose something." Sunset and the other girls were intrigued by what Aurora was mentioned and gave their full attention to her. "Team NOCT's leader, Noir Steele, had lost his family to a powerful Grimm called a 'Velgeroc'. We ended up encountering one on that mission and Noir went into a rage when he saw the monster. His anger ended up costing him one of his eyes when the Velgeroc slashed it out. If we weren't able to protect him, he wouldn't have survived."

"Oh my... At least you and your teammates we able to help him," Celadon said as she heard the story. "But, what's a Velgeroc?"

"It's a large bird-like Grimm similar to a Nevermore," Aurora explained. "But while a Nevermore is more like a raven or crow, a Velgeroc resembles an eagle in appearance."

"Still doesn't seem like something to take on by yourself. Not without years of experience," Rebecca remarked.

"Exactly," Aurora agreed. "Now then, as my sister would probably say, our chariot awaits," she playfully said as the five women approached their Bullhead.

* * *

Team SAFR and Aurora were watching the scenery go by as they flew over Vale in the Bullhead and began to reach the Forever Fall Forest. "You know, I don't think I'll ever get tired of seeing this place," Celadon remarked as she saw the sea of red trees below. "This place is simply divine."

Aurora tittered before she watched the forest go by. "I know how you feel. The Forest of Forever Fall has always been one of my favorite places in all of Remnant. The colorful leaves give off a wonderful feeling of the natural beauty this world has," Aurora said as she admired the forest from the aerial view. As she did, the pink-haired woman heard Sunset humming something. "Sunset, what song is that?"

Sunset groaned before she responded to her teacher. "I don't know. This song's been stuck in my head ever since I read Nora's mind with my Semblance and saw her 'happy place'. It's catchy, but it's starting to get on my nerves," Sunset explained.

"Sounds like something Bianca Coloratura would sing with that catchy beat," Celadon mentioned.

"I know that! Seriously, the lyrics even sound like something she would sing," Sunset moaned. "I think, 'Oh whoa, what am I to do?'~ I didn't know that I would fall in love with you~ And what to do right now, I haven't got a clue~ I just bite my tongue and when I want to say 'I love you' I say 'Boop'~" After singing the chorus of the song that was stuck in head, Sunset screamed in annoyance. "Vinyl, you got any music I could use to get this song out of my head," Sunset asked her music-loving teammate. However, her question wasn't heard as Vinyl was listening to her music and nodded her head along to it with her eyes closed. "Thank you, Vinyl. You're a real friend," Sunset said with playful sarcasm as she rolled her eyes.

"Is that our destination," Rebecca asked as she pointed out toward something in the distance when the Bullhead finished passing by the forest.

Team SAFR and Aurora looked out at where Rebecca was pointing to and saw what looked like a castle. The castle seemed to have been repaired before as the walls were lined with iron plating while the towers were in perfect condition with regular stone. As the airship began to land, the girls all saw the castle gatehouse had removed the doors and banners depicting the emblems of Aurora and Nocturne Celeste were hanging on the entryway alongside a third banner that depicted a larger alicorn with starry wings. Stepping out of the Bullhead, the girls marveled at the sight of the castle while Aurora thanked the pilot. "Here we are," Sunset said as she smiled brightly. "Garrison Academy."

"So, _this_ is your old school, Sunset," Celadon asked as she took in the view of the castle's courtyard. "It's amazing!"

"I can't believe that this place is a castle," Rebecca remarked. "Then again, Aurora and Nocturne did come from a family that were advisors to the last king of Vale."

"We did," Aurora said as she waved to a groundskeeper that was cutting the grass in the courtyard. "This castle was our family's home back in its prime, back before the current government of Vale was even thought of. Now, it's a historical location that I decided to change into a school in order to teach the next generations of warriors. As well as giving them a home when they have nowhere else to go to."

"Really," Celadon questioned as she looked around and saw some of Garrison Academy's students walk by. "Well, you do seem like you would be a good mother," she said to Aurora.

"Why, thank you, Celadon," Aurora replied as she and Team SAFR entered the main building. "Come along now, girls. I'll give you a tour." As the five made their way through the halls, Vinyl, Rebecca, and Celadon all saw that the interior of the castle was more similar to an actual school as lockers were seen along some walls. However, it was still a combat school and it showed as weapons and armor decorated some display cases. They could also see some paintings depicting events or figures of the Great War and other moments of Vale's history hanging on some of the walls of major locations in the school. After seeing everything at the castle, Aurora took Team SAFR to the school's dorms. "Oh, I just remembered that someone who teaches here would likely know more about where the Grimm we're tasked with defeating would be located in the forest. Why don't you girls go check out Sunset's room? I'm sure that she still has the key for it." Sunset nodded to answer her old teacher before she began speaking again. "I'll come to get you when I've gotten the information we need." With that, Aurora left to get everything ready for the mission while Team SAFR headed off for Sunset's room.

* * *

Sunset, Vinyl, Celadon, and Rebecca all made their way to Sunset's old dorm and the flame-haired girl pulled out an old key to unlock the room for the four to enter. As Team SAFR walked in the room, Sunset sighed in nostalgic content as she remembered her last few days at Garrison Academy and all the times she was in her own personal sanctuary. There were framed posters of bands on the walls, a guitar stand in the corner, a terrarium that Phoenix used to live in on top of a dresser, a few game systems across from the bed, and the window looked out to the west in order to see Forever Fall in the distance. "This is kind of what I expected from you, Sunset," Rebecca mentioned as she sat on the bed in a meditative position.

"Should I be offended by that comment," Sunset lightly mocked and got a laugh out of the ninja girl. "I wonder what I _did_ leave behind," Sunset said as she walked over to the closet. Opening the door to it, Sunset and Celadon looked over what clothes remained. "I forgot I had this," Sunset remarked as she pulled out a second leather jacket. "This one's smaller and doesn't use Dust, though. I had it when I first got here."

"So, you've _always_ had that style," Celadon asked.

"What can I say? I like leather," Sunset answered before throwing the jacket on the bed. "I should donate this or something," she said as Phoenix crawled out of her jacket pocket and onto her shoulder.

"What about the dresser," Celadon pointed out as she walked toward it with Vinyl joining her. "Are we going to find anything risqué," the blonde teased with a smile and laugh. Sunset only responded by rolling her eyes and crossing her arms while Vinyl opened the top drawer. "Oh, this is interesting," Celadon said as she pulled out a black halter-style bikini.

Sunset saw what Celadon had in her hand and swiftly grabbed it. "I was wondering where this went," Team SAFR's leader muttered as she carried the swimsuit over to her backpack and placed it inside. "Better take that back with me. We could probably go swimming on a break from training."

"I agree with you on that," Celadon stated. "Although, I think that you might wear it to attract a certain someone's attention," she added with a teasing giggle.

"What is _that_ supposed to mean," Sunset questioned.

"We did see you with that Raccoon Faunus at the dance," Rebecca said.

"You kept that blue rose you had in your hair too," Vinyl mentioned.

Sunset sighed and shook her head at her teammates. "Look, I told you before that the boy I danced with was _Sombra._ You know, Smoke Shadow? The thief that robbed the museum and stole that sword before?"

"And we got the items back," Celadon said. "We even saw that sword back in the great hall of the castle. It was in the hands of a suit of armor."

"You know, how dangerous would that sword be if a Geist possessed the armor and turned into an Arma Gigas," Rebecca pondered aloud.

"Back to the original topic of a Raccoon Faunus phantom thief that can walk through walls," Sunset reminded in a deadpan voice, "I could tell that he was being honest about not planning anything at the dance, but he's back in Vale now. I'm sure that he's going to do something eventually and steal something else," she said in a serious tone.

"It might be your heart if that flower had anything to do with it," Celadon teased with a smirk on her face.

"Be serious, Celadon. Like a thief would want to only be after me," Sunset told her teammate.

"You never know," Vinyl remarked with a shrug of her shoulders before looking at some of Sunset's old music collection.

Sunset sighed before her gecko nuzzled against her cheek. She smiled at Phoenix and gently stroked his head before Aurora came back and entered the room. "The Grimm are focused around some old ruins in the forest, a little bit south of the school," the Huntress stated. "Make sure you're prepared for a battle, girls."

* * *

 **With this chapter completed and Garrison Academy visited, we're now done with the first part of Team SAFR's mission. I'm thinking that this one will have one or two more chapters before Fragment Hunter meets back up at Beacon Academy. Until then, Team SAFR is going Grimm hunting in Forever Fall and they might see something of interest in those ruins I mentioned.**

 **I'm glad that I got this chapter done in time for my 23** **rd** **birthday. So, Happy Birthday to me!**

 **What kind of Grimm will Team SAFR encounter in the Forest of Forever Fall? Will they be able to handle themselves? Will they meet up with somebody like Team SLVR and Team FCSA did? Stick around and find out for yourselves.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	32. Fight in Forever Fall

**Hi, everybody! WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story" and the second part of Team SAFR's Search and Destroy mission in Forever Fall. The last chapter, the girls made it to Garrison Academy and prepared for their assignment. Let's see if they can handle themselves for whatever comes next.**

 **Regret nothing!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum**

 **I only own my Original Characters featured in this story.**

* * *

After Aurora Celeste informed them about the last known location of the Creatures of Grimm sighted nearby, Team SAFR made sure that their weaponry and other equipment was ready for battle. Leaving the castle that was Garrison Academy, Aurora and Team SAFR trekked their way through the forest. Admiring the beauty of Forever Fall may have been something the girls could've done, but they were on a job and had to make sure that the Grimm were taken care of. As the five women made their way through Forever Fall, they talked about some things to pass the time. "If I were to have any job if I didn't choose to become a Huntress, I would want to be a movie star," Celadon said as she explained what her alternate career choice was. "I would dazzle everyone with my acting skills and beauty," she declared.

"Well, you do tend to be overdramatic at times," Sunset remarked with a grin.

"And what is _that_ supposed to mean," Celadon questioned.

"Remember the time when we first saw Bianca's penthouse," Sunset replied. Celadon grinned sheepishly when the moment was brought up as the elegant blonde fainted after processing the fact that Azalea's childhood friend was currently staying in a luxurious hotel suite while in Vale. "And let's not forget the time that Team JADE tried to throw a full plate of rotten vegetables at Azalea and they missed. The plate ended up hitting our table and those nasty veggies landed in your hair. You ended up screaming as loud as Lapis' Semblance."

"I swear, those ruffians are going to get what's coming to them if they keep up with these annoying methods of bullying our dear Azalea," Celadon remarked with a frown and a flip of her hair.

"Even if they might just be jerks, why do they keep picking on Azalea only," Rebecca inquired. "They could've targeted someone else, but they choose our friend specifically?"

"People have different motivations for what they do," Aurora stated. "Some are influenced by who they see as a hero, some because they know it's the only thing they know, and some because of being driven by emotions."

"I need to see what's going on in their heads if that's the case," Sunset muttered. As the group continued, they saw an old and destroyed stone building. "What is this place," Sunset asked.

Stepping closer and seeing a faded mark on what remained of the door, Aurora explained what exactly the building was. "This used to be an outpost during the Great War, but it eventually fell to Grimm during a battle. If we're at this location, then our destination is close by," Aurora told them as she made sure to grab her sword.

Team SAFR made sure they're weapons were ready and soon, they heard growling coming from behind some trees. The girls all saw a small pack of Beowolves and a quartet of Ursai emerging from the forest. The bear-like Grimm roared as they saw the Huntresses and the Beowolves charged at them with fangs and claws bared. Separating from each other, the girls dodged the Grimm and counterattacked the monsters with their ranged attacks. Nailing most of the Grimm in the heads, the only ones that remained were the four Ursai and eight Beowolves. The Grimm all growled at Team SAFR before they charged at the girls again. Acting first, Aurora used her Semblance to release a blast of light like a laser to cut off the arms of several Beowolves before the beam sliced into an Ursa's foot. With the Grimm crippled, Aurora started by attacking the injured Ursa with her sword and thrust the weapon into the bear several dozen times in the blink of an eye.

After Aurora defeated the Ursa, Sunset and Celadon moved in to slash and stab at Beowolves surrounding the Huntress. Taking out the monsters, Sunset changed her weapon into its rifle form and shot at one of the Ursai charging at Rebecca. With the Grimm distracted, the ninja was able to slash at the monster's throat to kill it before using her Semblance to create a smokescreen. With the nearby Grimm unable to find Rebecca, who was now hiding in the trees, Celadon unleashed her Semblance on the demonic creatures and struck them with gem-like projectiles. When the remaining Grimm ran out of the smoke and toward Celadon, they were hit in the back with Rebecca's shuriken when she used her armguards to recall the weapons with a magnetic pull. Meanwhile, Vinyl was dodging the remaining two Ursai and their claws before Aurora and Sunset both stabbed their swords through the Grimm's heads. With the final two monsters dead, the first-year team took a deep breath before Aurora turned to face them. "We may have dealt with these Grimm easily, but they aren't the ones we're after. Our target is deeper in the forest," Aurora told them before she pointed past the outpost. "This way."

* * *

Making their way through the woods, Team SAFR was feeling a bit exhausted from their walk through Forever Fall. "Ugh... This is such a pain," Sunset said as she opened a bottle of water and took a drink. "This forest goes for miles on Vale's northern coast. I'm surprised that we haven't found any other Grimm yet. Are you sure that it was some ruins that the Grimm were sighted at," she asked Aurora.

"Let me double-check," Aurora said as she pulled out her Scroll. While she searched for the information, Team SAFR took a small break. Vinyl began to inspect her weapon as it seemed to not work during the earlier battle. Soon, Aurora found the information about the mission again. "Okay, there _are_ Grimm at some ruins in the forest, but it's actually not like the outpost," Aurora told the others. "Turns out, the Grimm have been sighted near an old stretch of railroad tracks that used to go through the forest. It's just a little further to the southwest of our current location."

"Thank goodness," Celadon said as she put her own water bottle away. "I don't think I could have taken anymore aimless walking."

"Which is why you always need to have a map with you," Rebecca commented. "And if you don't have one, make one."

"Good advice," Sunset remarked. "Who told you that?"

"My grandfather," Rebecca answered.

"Come on, girls," Aurora said as she put away her Scroll. "We need to take care of those Grimm." Taking the lead, Team SAFR followed after the pink-haired Huntress as they made their way toward the old railroad tracks that Aurora mentioned. After another few minutes of walking, the five females found the remains of an old stretch of track. Plants had grown over the rails and the wooden ties have rotted away, so it was obvious that the line they found hadn't been used for quite some time. Before they could figure out which way to go, Aurora heard something. "Quick, hide," she told the girls as a large shadow began to fly over the tracks and past the girls. When the flying shadow went past them, Aurora turned to Team SAFR. "Seems that we may have found one of the Grimm we were looking for. Let's follow it," the Huntress said as the girls walked down the tracks, ready for a fight just in case.

Going after the shadow, Aurora and Team SAFR soon came across an old and demolished station before seeing the shadow stop and begin to descend. Hiding in the remains of the station, the girls saw that the Grimm wasn't like what they encountered earlier. It was a large insect-like Grimm that resembled a 20-foot tall praying mantis, but it had back legs similar to a grasshopper, multiple horns on its head, and mandibles similar to a stag beetle. Landing on the ground, it folded its red wings and hid them underneath another white set of wings that acted as armor. More Grimm of the same kind soon appeared, but they looked younger as they were not only smaller than the first insectoid Grimm at what looked like the same height as Vinyl, but the beetle-like mandibles were actually on their heads as a pair of horns. "What _are_ those things," Celadon asked as she was slightly creeped out by the bug-like Creatures of Grimm.

"Scykiri," Aurora answered. "Mantis-like Grimm that attack in small swarms and can cut through anything in their path with their arms."

The girls were quietly observing the Grimm while Phoenix snuck out of Sunset's jacket and saw the Grimm. When the gecko made a small scared noise, the Scykiri turned toward the station and approached the building. Seeing that Phoenix was scared by the Scykiri, Sunset held her pet in her hands before she and the others avoided the largest Scykiri's attack. With a swing of its arm, it carved through the wall that Aurora and Team SAFR was hiding behind. Making her way toward the closest tree, Sunset placed Phoenix on a low-hanging branch. "Stay here, Phoenix. I'm going to make sure these things don't come after you or my friends," Sunset told her beloved pet before drawing her sword and changing it into its sniper rifle mode.

The younger Scykiri all jumped toward Aurora and each member of Team SAFR with their arms raised. Bringing their limbs down, they tried to cut away at the humans, only for the girls to dodge the Grimm and slash at the ground instead. Sunset opened fire on the mantis monsters, but the younger Grimm fought back by unleashing a blast of green-colored electricity from their horns. The bullets were destroyed and Sunset had to change her weapon's form in order to not waste any ammo. With her sword raised, she ran toward the Scykiri and watched as the Grimm jumped forward to try attacking her. Thinking quickly, Sunset slid across the ground with her sword raised as the Scykiri landed so that her weapon would cut away at the reckless monster's body. While her plan worked, it only cut off one of the Grimm's front legs while she avoided getting hurt. The Scykiri screamed and hissed in pain before it unleashed another blast of electricity which managed to hurt Sunset.

Rebecca tried to hide from the Scykiri and go with some stealth tactics by using her Semblance to create more smokescreens, but the Scykiri just began to cut down every tree she was hiding in. Changing up her strategy, Rebecca threw shuriken at the Grimm as she avoided each of them and tried to use the Dust in the throwing weapons to harm them. While they did hurt the insect-like monsters, they were just powering through the pain and managed to jump onto the girl. Rebecca was pinned down by one of the younger Scykiri and she had to use her sword to avoid getting harmed by the Grimm's scythe-like limbs. "These things are tougher than they look," Rebecca called out as she struggled against the insectoid creature.

"I can see that," Celadon exclaimed as she tried to block some of the attacks aimed at her with her spear, but one slightly older Grimm managed to disarm her of her weapon. Forced to use her Semblance, Celadon created a large gemstone and began to shield herself from the Scykiri. Unfortunately, the Grimm began to gain up on her and recklessly attacked the girl's barrier by slashing at it or jumping on the gem. "I could use a little help over here," Celadon said to her teammates.

"I think we've all got our hands full at the moment," Sunset replied as she managed to avoid another attack from the Scykiri she was fighting. Aurora was dealing with several younger Scykiri, but the largest one managed to sneak up on her from behind and put her on the defensive. Seeing her teacher on the ropes, Sunset was beginning to feel stressed out from what was happening as she looked at her teammates. Rebecca and Celadon were pinned down while she was avoiding a Grimm that she never battled before. As she ended up tripping and falling on her back, Sunset saw the Scykiri jump at her and countered with a stream of flames from her Fire Dust jacket. As the Scykiri burned and evaporated as it died, Sunset caught her breath before hearing music around the area.

Seeing Vinyl step forward, the blue-haired girl spoke up. "Rhythm Scratch is working again," she stated with a smile before turning up the music that was playing. As the music sounded off through the ruins and nearby forest, the Scykiri all approached Vinyl who was moving around to the fast-paced beat of the song. When the lyrics started, Vinyl started her attack by launching an energy blast from her palm and nailed the closest Scykiri in the head. When the Grimm stumbled backward, Vinyl rushed forward with a hard light katana in her hands and slashed the injured bug to pieces. As the Grimm died, two more tried to slash at Vinyl before she countered by performing a spinning windmill dance move with her katana summoned from the Hard Light Projection Braces on her legs. As she spun around, the Scykiri's attacks were parried and their limbs were cut off by Vinyl's weapon before she launched herself off the ground with her hands and kicked at the heads of the two Grimm in front of her multiple times, firing several energy blasts with each kick.

With two more Scykiri dead, Sunset helped by sending several fireballs at the Scykiri pinning down Rebecca and Celadon. With the Grimm's attention caught by Sunset, they jumped at her only for the Huntress-in-training to dodge and used her Dust techniques to create an explosion underneath the Grimm. As the flames engulfed the bug-like monsters, Vinyl created two disks of hard light and threw them at the burning Grimm to slice them into pieces as they turned golden when they approached the demonic insects. With those Grimm dead, there were only three more Scykiri left and all of them were fighting against Aurora as she used her Semblance to try gaining any advantage she could.

The largest Scykiri noticed that its swarm was killed, and it cried out as its arms began to grow bigger. The Grimm's arms split apart and it had four bladed limbs to attack with as Aurora looked shocked at the Scykiri's additional attack capabilities. Dodging the blades, Aurora watched as the Grimm's arms got caught in a large tree trunk when it had the bad luck of impaling the tree when it missed Aurora. The Huntress ran onto the roof of the station and saw the last two Scykiri, who were slightly younger than the one that got stuck, generate electricity between the multiple horns on its head before more green electricity built up between its mandibles. The Grimm fired beams of green lightning at Aurora, but Celadon countered by sending a large gemstone at the attack to block it. Seeing Team SAFR with all their weapons raised for battle, Aurora smiled at them while the trapped Scykiri managed to free itself. "Time for some pest control," Sunset quipped as she held her sword in front of her.

"Really? That line," Celadon asked incredulously.

"I thought it would've been fun," Sunset admitted before the Scykiri all charged more electricity and discharged it at Team SAFR. Dodging the beams, the girls surrounded the Scykiri and slashed away at their legs with their weapons. The Scykiri cried out in pain before they took flight and attacked by either blasting more electricity or slashing at their targets. The girls kept dodging the attacks and Sunset soon came up with a plan. "Fantasia," she shouted. Hearing the code for their team attack, Vinyl and Celadon charged their Semblances and fired them at the Grimm hovering above them. When the energy blasts hit the gems, they exploded and sent two of the Scykiri down to the ground for Vinyl to slash them to pieces with Rhythm Scratch's hard light claws. With only the largest Scykiri left, it hissed at the Huntress team before seeing Aurora launch herself forward to strike the Grimm. Avoiding her attack, the Scykiri countered by shooting Aurora with an electric blast that sent her falling to the ground. "Green Flash," Sunset called out as she ignited her jacket's Fire Dust and sent a torrent of fire at the last Scykiri.

Vinyl heard what Sunset called out and unleashed a barrage of energy blasts that went through the flames, causing the attacks to combine and become larger fireballs. The Scykiri tried to dodge the attack, but the flames managed to burn its wings and it began to spiral down to the ground below. Sunset and Vinyl then prepared their swords and slashed at the Grimm with a battle cry. "SEIYA!" With the two sounding off, Vinyl and Sunset cut the final Scykiri into four large pieces before it crashed onto the remains of the station and died.

With the battle over and the remains of the Scykiri evaporating, Sunset went to the tree she left Phoenix at and saw the gecko eating a worm at the base of the tree. "Is everyone alright," Aurora asked as she picked herself back up.

"Yeah, we're all fine," Rebecca replied as Vinyl stopped the music playing from Rhythm Scratch.

"That was intense. I can't wait to tell the others when we get back," Sunset said with a smile as Phoenix crawled onto her palm. "I wonder how they're all doing?"

"I'm sure that we'll find out when we return to Beacon. For now, I just want to take a nice relaxing bath back at Garrison Academy," Celadon said.

"You can use my private bathroom," Aurora offered with a smile. "For now, let's go report that the job is done and we dealt with the Scykiri swarm."

* * *

When Team SAFR and Aurora returned to Garrison Academy, Celadon took Aurora's offer to use the latter's private bathroom while the Huntress reported that the mission was a success. Sunset, Rebecca, and Vinyl chose to relax in Sunset's old room and played video games in order to pass the time. "That was an intense battle. Good thing you managed to get your weapon working again, Vi," Sunset told Vinyl, gave a thumbs up in reply.

Soon, the door opened and revealed Celadon in a white bathrobe. She sighed blissfully before speaking to the others. "That bath was heavenly. Admittedly, I'm a little jealous of Aurora for having that kind of bathroom."

"I'm sure you would be jealous of a lot of things," Rebecca remarked. "Like Azalea and her mother having a better figure than you."

"...A little bit, yes," Celadon answered as she got herself dressed. "However, Sunset, Cereza, and myself definitely have the second-best bodies of Fragment Hunter. And I think Layla would come next."

"Before we just start talking about our friends like that, I think that we should probably do something for that concert we were asked to help with," Sunset told the others as she stopped playing her game and grabbed the guitar in her room off of the stand. "We did agree to help out Bianca. I mean, who wouldn't want to do something like this," Sunset asked rhetorically as she tuned her guitar and began to play the opening to the song, 'Caffeine', that Bianca Coloratura sang.

"I feel like everything's going to be interesting when we return to Vale," Celadon said as she fixed her hair.

* * *

 **And now the solo missions for Fragment Hunter are completed! In the next chapter, everyone will meet back up and have a breather before they get back to doing some important things in preparation for the Vytal Festival. Not only that, but a few more characters will be introduced and one or two of them will be VERY important for the story.**

 **I hope that you all enjoyed the battle with the Scykiri because I was planning that out a lot! The song that Vinyl plays when she gets into the battle is "Got to keep it real" from Kamen Rider OOO, mostly because the GataKiriBa Combo and Uva from that show were the inspiration for the extra details for the Scykiri (otherwise, it would have just been a regular giant mantis monster). Also, a speed drawing video of the Scykiri made by my friend on Tumblr and YouTube, Chuckles the Jester, can be found on his YouTube channel. Go ahead and check that out if you want to see more of what the Scykiri is supposed to look like.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	33. Downtime

**WaterDragonMaverick here with the newest chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Team SAFR finished up their mission in Forever Fall and dealt with a small swarm of mantis-like Grimm called 'Scykiri'. Now that all three teams that make up Fragment Hunter have finished their individual jobs, we'll have them all regroup at Beacon for some rest and relaxation. Not only that, but also meet up with some characters featured in previous chapters. Our heroes definitely deserve this little break before the Vytal Festival and Bianca Coloratura's concert.**

 **Come on back!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only characters I own are the ones of my own original creation**

* * *

Beacon Academy was peaceful during the time between the recent Breach and the upcoming Vytal Festival. Students were getting training in, going on missions, or just relaxing after a long day they had. Team SLVR was in the first group as they were getting some training in with their mentor from their bounty hunting job, Ventus Gaia. Ventus used his ability to fly at high speeds to keep the teenagers on their toes as he kicked or punched at them. Lapis soon twirled her trident around to create a burst of wind around herself to knock Ventus off course. When the Falcon Faunus went flying in another direction, Rua teleported above him and slammed her shield into his back. When they landed on the ground, Ventus moved his legs and fired a bullet from his greaves that nailed Rua in the back of her shoulder. Her Aura protected her from most of the damage, but she still flinched and gave Ventus an opening to escape before Vixen used her Semblance. With an illusion of a giant burning lion in front of him, Ventus pulled out his combat knife and prepared to fight whatever came at him before Silver jumped out of the illusion in his wolf form. Silver landed on Ventus and forced the latter onto his back, but the Huntsman responded by kicking the Wolf Faunus off as he rolled backward. Team SLVR then regrouped and held their weapons in front of themselves as they stared down Ventus. "Alright, I think that's good for today," Ven told the teenagers as he put away his knife.

When they heard him, Team SLVR put away their weapons as well and caught their breath. "Man, I never thought that Azalea's uncle would be like this," Rua said. "He's intense in battle."

"I'll say," Silver agreed as he transformed back to normal. "He's badass. I mean, the way he took out Clay Crimson was just so cool! It looked like it was out of one of those hero shows or a video game."

"Anyways, you think Team FCSA and Team SAFR will be back soon," Lapis asked. "I saw that the missions they selected had been registered as completed."

"Probably," Silver replied. "Let's go see if their back yet."

"I'll come with you guys," Ventus said as he walked alongside Team SLVR.

When the five reached the courtyard, they saw that Terracotta was speaking to Nocturne Celeste about something before they saw Team SLVR and Ventus. "Ven! How's it going, little brother," Terracotta exclaimed as he saw the Falcon Faunus.

"Hey, Terra! I beat up this jerk that I had to hunt down with Azalea's friends here," Ventus replied as he playfully slugged his massive foster brother in the shoulder. "You should've seen it! He kept using his Semblance to make things explode, but I kept flying away or used Dust to deal with them! And when he started to catch me off guard with hand-to-hand combat, I changed up the Dust in my greaves and kept kicking him with fire!"

"Really? Tell me more, Ven," Nocturne said as she was intrigued by the story.

Ventus heard the woman and slowly turned to face her with slightly pink cheeks. "Hi, Nocturne. Nice to you here. Here at Beacon. Beacon Adaca- Academy. Beacon Academy. Hi. Hello. Hi," Ventus flubbed as he tried to speak to Nocturne.

"Is he okay," Vixen asked as Team SLVR watched Ventus make a fool of himself while Nocturne giggled quietly.

"Oh yeah," Terracotta said. "He's just not good with pretty girls, even after all these years. Hell, you should've seen when I first introduced him to Ivy. He kept stammering so much that I thought his brain had melted. Hahahaha!"

"Dude! Really?! You have to bring that up," Ventus exclaimed as he turned to his brother.

"Yes," Terra responded with a smirk on his face.

Ventus used his Semblance to hover in the air so that he could look Terracotta in the eye before speaking to him. "You want to settle this the usual way, bro," Ventus asked. "Because I'm ready to go any-"

"UNCLE VEN," a girl's voice yelled out before the Falcon Faunus was tackled to the ground by somebody and their dog. Terracotta, Nocturne, and Team SLVR watched as Azalea hugged her uncle tightly while Dante licked the man's face. "Oh, it's so good to see you! When did you get to Vale? How long are you staying? Did you bring me anything," Azalea said and asked Ventus as she began to squeeze the air out of his lungs.

"Azalea... Can't breathe," Ventus managed to squeak out as his niece kept an iron grip on his midsection and Dante kept licking him.

"Oh, sorry," Azalea apologized as she released him and pulled Dante back. Now free of the two, Ventus took deep breaths and cleaned off his face before seeing Team FCSA approach with Lucifer Fujita and Team PRDT. "I'm so happy that you're visiting, Uncle Ven," Azalea said. "I want you to meet my friends."

"Easy there, Freckles," Ventus said as he stretched out his back and heard a pop. "I've already met Team SLVR, so what about the others?"

After a few quick introductions to each other, Team SAFR soon arrived with Aurora Celeste, Ivy Dahlia Holstein, and the other two dogs that belonged to the Holstein Family, Diana and Drei. "And that's Team SAFR coming up now," Azalea said. "Hey, girls! Come and meet my Uncle Ventus," she shouted to the other members of Fragment Hunter.

"Hey, isn't that the one Faunus who rescued you from those Rapier Wasps," Sunset asked as she recognized Ventus Gaia.

"Yeah, That's Uncle Ven, alright," Azalea answered. "He's always been looking out for me whenever he visited home."

"Well, you're family," Ven stated. "Who would I be if I didn't look out for my family and friends?"

"A giant bird looking for food," Terracotta quipped with a playful smirk, which Ventus replied to by laughing sarcastically. As everyone began talking about a variety of things, Terracotta and Aurora noticed something about the lone male member of Team PRDT from Vacuo. "Hey, Aurora. Can I talk to you in private for a moment?" As the two former members of Team NOCT separated from the others, they had serious looks on their faces as they discussed what they saw. "That Percival Ivory kid looks a bit familiar, doesn't he?"

"Yeah. Too familiar," Aurora agreed. "Considering that Team FCSA spent time with his team on their job, they might know something about him."

"If I'm right, then we might have just met the son of Orchid Tilia," Terracotta said as he looked at Team PRDT heading off for their dorm room.

"Your ex-girlfriend and our old teammate... I'm not sure if that's a good thing or something that might end up being like what happened to us," Aurora said. "I guess time will tell."

* * *

Back with Fragment Hunter and the others, Lucifer Fujita was introducing himself to Ivy. "Hello, Madam. My name is Father Lucifer Fujita. May you receive bountiful blessings," he said with a polite bow of his head.

"Thank you. I've been told that many times and I already have them," Ivy replied with a smile as she placed her arms under her chest. "It's been a while since I met somebody of strong belief. Which religion do you belong to?"

"While I may worship my God, I've discovered that stories of deities with messages to their people are similar to my own faith's morals. As such, I've been learning about multiple practices and studying their lessons in order to share them with those who need help in trying times," Lucifer told Ivy.

"That does seem like something a true holy man would do," Ivy said. "What inspired you to become religious in the first place?"

Lucifer sighed as he placed a hand on his book and turned in the direction of his daughter, Cereza Fujita. "It was when my wife died that I eventually found new hope," he answered. "Since then, I just want to make sure that nobody becomes the same as I once was."

Hearing his explanation, Ivy gave a sad smile and placed her hand on his shoulder. "You know, some cultures believe that around the end of October and the beginning of November, the spirits of the departed may visit their loved ones when they are left offerings and have a trail of marigold petals to enter the land of the living. My family's farm planted marigolds where my parents were buried so that they could see how their home was doing. Perhaps you could do something similar to that," Ivy said.

Lucifer smiled at what Ivy told him and reached into his pocket to hold something. "I believe that sounds like a beautiful sentiment," he voiced as he put his book away. "I'm sure that my wife would've loved to meet you."

"I think she would," Ivy agreed. "Well, I need to get going and ask my daughter if she's been up to anything in her personal life," the Cow Faunus chuckled. "Make sure that you keep in touch with your daughter as well." Lucifer nodded at Ivy before she left and he soon walked over to Cereza to talk about how her life was going.

* * *

The next day, the members of Fragment Hunter were all exhausted from the currently warm weather and all their missions. "We need to do something," Lapis said as she sat down next to the statue in the Beacon Courtyard.

"Yeah. I'm pretty beat and this weather isn't helping much," Azalea agreed before her Scroll sounded off. Fishing it out of her pocket, she saw the name of the Caller ID and answered it immediately. "Bianca! How's everything going," Azalea answered the call. Upon hearing the name Azalea said, Silver and the other members of Fragment Hunter paid close attention. "Yeah, the weather's really hot today and we just finished some missions," Azalea said. "Wait, really? You'd do that? On the roof? Wow. I'll see what the others have to say and I'll meet you there." Hanging up her Scroll and putting it away, Azalea looked at Fragment Hunter to explain what Bianca called about. "Bianca wants us to hang out at the hotel's pool on the roof. Anyone interested?"

"Yes," Celadon, Vinyl, and Silver immediately exclaimed and bolted off to grab their swimsuits from their rooms.

Seeing that the three rushed off so fast that they left clouds of dust, the others just blinked at what happened before continuing to answer Azalea. "It might be fun. Count me in," Sunset said. "What about you guys," she asked the other members of Fragment Hunter.

"You all enjoy the pool. I'm going to get some reading done in the library," Cereza replied as she left for her destination.

"Same here," Rebecca voiced as Vixen nodded before they followed Cereza.

"I haven't gone swimming in a while," Lapis remarked.

"We know that Slate can't swim, so he should come with us to get practice," Rua mentioned. "Come on, we need to see if Slate has a spare swimsuit for you," she told Slate as she dragged him to the dorms. Slate could only look at her and the others in confusion as he was pulled away.

"Good thing Celadon found one of my swimsuits while we were at Garrison Academy," Sunset said to herself as she left to get what she needed.

Layla and Azalea were on their own as they went off to their dorm room to get their swimsuits. Layla noticed that her teammate was a bit nervous and decided to talk to her. "Hey, Lea? Is something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing. Umm... It's fine," Azalea unconvincingly told Layla, who raised an eyebrow at her in response. "Okay... I'm a bit nervous about wearing a swimsuit in front of you guys," Azalea admitted.

"You have anything revealing with your figure," Layla asked in order to help Azalea out.

"Not really," the Cow Faunus replied.

"Well, I don't see what the problem is if you can still cover yourself up enough," Layla said. "Come on. I'll help you out with finding a good one."

* * *

Bianca Coloratura was happy to see Azalea and her friends again when she invited them to go swimming. Wearing a blue bikini and choosing not to put on any makeup, she saw most of Fragment Hunter reach the pool to meet her. "Hey everybody! Glad that you could make it. What about the others?"

"Cereza, Rebecca, and Vixen chose to stay at the library for some peace and quiet," Sunset told Bianca. Fragment Hunter's de facto leader was wearing the black halter bikini she mentioned earlier. It had her winged sun emblem on the front in red and gold, she wore a pair of white sandals, and she also had a pareo with a flame pattern around her hips. "However, _some of us_ were really eager to accept your invitation," Sunset said as she looked at Vinyl, Celadon, and Silver.

Silver wore a black pair of trunks with a chain pattern on the legs and waist while the girls wore their own bikinis. Celadon had on a green bikini and a pareo with a vine pattern while Vinyl wore an amethyst bikini top with a white lily pattern and a blue pair of shorts with her emblem on the hips in a golden color. Celadon removed her hairpin and shook her blonde hair loose while Vinyl adjusted her sunglasses to make sure they stayed on her face. "Well, when an idol such as yourself invites us to spend time at the pool of a wonderful hotel, how can we say 'no' to that," Celadon remarked.

"Not to mention Silver and Vinyl probably wanted to see you in a bikini," Rua said with a smirk on her face while she wore a tankini with a military camouflage pattern.

"No! No no no. That's... that's not it at... that's just... hehehehe," Silver stammered as he attempted to save face and laughed nervously. Vinyl only shrugged and nodded slightly in response as she looked at Bianca.

"I swear that Silver's so infatuated with you, you keep showing up in his dreams," Lapis commented as she arrived in an aqua-colored bikini with a mermaid scale pattern.

"I can actually say that's true," Sunset added as she referred to her Semblance. Removing her pareo and placing it on a nearby chair, Sunset dived into the cool refreshing water. As she surfaced, she let out a blissful sigh before seeing Layla and Slate come into view. While Slate wore a pair of gray trunks and his hat, Layla had a blue and white striped bikini on. "Hey, where's Azalea," Sunset asked.

"She's still changing," Layla told the others as she sat down to sunbath. "She'll be out in a little bit, but I'm sure she'll be a little nervous. Even though Slate did see her getting changed before."

"Layla! Do you really have to bring that up?! I thought we would forget that," Slate exclaimed.

"Blame your Semblance," Layla retorted with a giggle.

After a few minutes of enjoying the water and sun, Sunset sensed Azalea nearby and saw the Cow Faunus shyly looking at everyone from the door. "Nobody's going to bite, Azalea," Sunset called out. "Come on over."

"Umm... I don't know," Azalea timidly said.

"Azalea, you'd look good in anything," Bianca said to reassure her friend. "Besides, you're not the only hot girl here," she reminded as she gestured to herself and the other girls of Fragment Hunter. Sunset and Celadon smirked and posed to prove Bianca's point while Lapis and Layla nodded in agreement. "Plus, we're the only ones here. You don't need to worry about some random perv coming up and harassing you."

"If there was one, I'd break his teeth in," Rua stated as she cracked her knuckles.

Azalea heard what all her friends said and slowly stepped out into view. Everyone's eyes widened as they saw the girl wearing a black wetsuit with cyan sleeves and a light green trim on the cuffs and on the legs. Her suit had a pink design on the chest area that looked like a butterfly floating above some hibiscus flowers as well. Azalea also wore a necklace with a small pink shell that rested on top of her chest similar to her mother's ruby necklace. "Umm... Is this... Is this okay," Azalea asked as she saw everyone was a little too quiet.

"Yes," everyone answered immediately and simultaneously.

"I told you you'd look good in anything," Bianca said.

"She really does," Slate agreed. As he looked at Azalea, he saw that the wetsuit showed off her hourglass figure very well. When he realized that his gaze was lingering on her chest a little longer than he should have, he turned away and blushed. As Azalea walked past him, she was blushing as well when she saw that the results of his martial arts training with Terracotta was showing. After they smiled at each other, Slate looked at the ground in embarrassment before he saw Azalea's butt and began to stare at it. Vinyl approached Slate and placed a hand on his shoulder as she nodded in silent agreement that Azalea had a very nice body.

"Did you have that with you when you came to Beacon," Celadon asked Azalea. "You really fill that wetsuit out quite nicely, darling."

"Well... I got it a while ago when I was afraid of revealing my body," Azalea said as she entered the water and floated on her back. "I guess that showing skin isn't the only way if you're all looking at me like this."

"Lea, you're hot. I know that you know it," Layla told her.

"Yeah. A little confidence in yourself is pretty much all you need," Sunset stated.

"I may even know a way to help you get a little extra," Bianca mentioned while she was standing in the shallow end of the pool and flapped her wings to dry them off. "I have a photo shoot later in the week. How'd you and some of the other girls like to join me?"

"Model with... rising... singing idol... I just... Yes," Celadon agreed immediately.

"I'm game," Sunset replied. "You think Cereza would want to join in?"

"You need male models or a bodyguard," Silver asked as he swam over to Bianca, who gave a flirtatious smile to the Wolf Faunus.

Azalea thought it over for a while and looked at everyone around the pool. Her friends all gave her advice and support before, so she looked back at Bianca to answer the Dove Faunus' question. "Okay. I'll come to the photo shoot," she said.

"Yay! This is going to be fun, Lea," Bianca exclaimed as she hugged Azalea. When they released each other, the rest of the afternoon was going by fast as the teenagers had fun at the pool. "Hey, you think we should've brought Auntie Ivy," Bianca questioned.

"If my mom was here in a bikini, I think everyone would have a bloody nose," Azalea retorted with a grin. While Azalea and Bianca laughed at the idea, most of Fragment Hunter began to imagine it and their faces began to turn bright red.

Shaking off the thought by diving underwater and swimming to the other side of the pool, Sunset remembered something she found out before. "Hey, Slate," she called out to the gunslinger. "Maybe you should get in the water? Learning to swim might help out in the future."

Slate looked at Sunset and everyone else in the pool as he stared at the water. "I don't think that I'll do well," Slate said.

"You can't expect to become an expert swimmer on the first try," Lapis said as she floated by in the water.

"At least we aren't teaching you like Yang would," Azalea remarked. "She'd teach you to swim by pushing you into the water. In fact, that's how I learned," she explained and muttered the last part to herself.

"Too bad she and Team RWBY went on another mission," Layla mentioned. "I'm sure all of them would've had fun with us."

"I'm sure they're pretty busy with that mission," Rua said. "Besides, they're some of the best fighters in our year. They'll be fine."

"Yes, I'm sure that they'll be able to handle whatever chaotic thing comes their way," Celadon remarked.

* * *

In Vale, Smoke Shadow was walking around in casual wear and enjoying a day in the city with Oliver Electrum, Kun Agate, and Veronica Moonstone. The four of them were also a known gang of thieves that Fragment Hunter had faced off against before and had the codenames 'Sombra', 'Hermit', 'Tremor' and 'Rouge'. Smoke sighed in content as the four walked around the city. "Today's a pretty great day," the Raccoon Faunus said. "Not much to do right now."

"Yeah. We can just have some fun," Veronica agreed as she walked past a young male and made sure that she swayed her hips as she passed him.

"Veronica, I swear that you haven't really changed since the day you joined," Oliver commented as he adjusted his glasses.

"Can you blame her with what she was doing when we met her by chance," Kun voiced as he ate away at a popsicle.

"That's in the past, guys. Let's just have some fun today," Smoke said as he stopped walking and turned around to talk with his friends. Soon, the Faunus felt something gently tugging on his tail to get his attention. Turning back around, Smoke saw a young girl with pink hair who looked like she was about 14. "Can I help you, kid," Smoke Shadow asked as he looked down at the girl.

The girl nodded her head before she spoke to the thief. "Can you tell me where I can find Beacon Academy," she asked as she looked at him with viridian-colored eyes.

* * *

 **And with this not-so-small breather chapter, we have character interactions, a hint as to the identity of another member of Team NOCT, fanservice, an upcoming photo shoot with Bianca, and somebody looking for Beacon. Who is this girl and why does she want to find Beacon? Will Team SMKE end up doing something? What awaits Fragment Hunter next time? I guess you'll need to tune in and find out.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	34. Feeling Peachy

**Welcome back to the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Chapter", readers! During the last chapter, Fragment Hunter enjoyed a little time off from their missions and most of them went swimming with Bianca Coloratura. However, a girl is looking for Beacon Academy for some reason and has asked Smoke Shadow's gang while they enjoyed their own day off in Vale. Just who is this girl and why does she want to find the school? Find out right now as we pick up where we left off.**

 **Let the fun begin!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters featured in this story**

* * *

"Can you tell me where I can find Beacon Academy," the pink-haired girl with viridian eyes asked Smoke Shadow as she looked at him with a smile on her face. She was 5 feet tall, had lightly tanned skin, and she had a developing hourglass figure that she seemed to keep in shape. The girl was wearing a simple outfit with a white t-shirt that had pink shoulders and sleeves, an emblem of a pink crystalline peach in the shape of a heart on the chest of her shirt, blue jean shorts, white socks, pink sneakers, and a belt buckle in the same shape as the emblem on her shirt.

As she rocked back and forth on her feet, Smoke answered her question. "I've actually been there before," the Raccoon Faunus replied. "I can show you the way."

As soon as she got her answer, the girl hugged Smoke tightly for a second and caught the thief off his guard. "Thank you! Come on! Let's go! I wanna get there now! I'll race you," she said very fast as she ran off down the street.

While the phantom thief fell to the ground after he was released from the 14-year old's grip, the others looked at what just happened. "Well, that was a thing," Kun Agate remarked as he finished off his popsicle.

"You meet all kinds of characters in places like Vale," Oliver said.

"You might want to chase after her before you lose sight of her," Veronica told Smoke as he stood back up.

"On it," Smoke said as he ran after the young teenager. Watching the girl duck and weave through anything in her way as if she knew where they would be, Smoke was a little impressed at the girl's agility. Dodging people and obstacles himself, Smoke caught up with the girl and watched her stop dead in her tracks when she saw something in a store window. "Huh? What's she doing now," Smoke said to himself before he noticed the building they in front of was 'Magnolia's'. "Oh, she wants a snack," Smoke realized when the girl entered the store.

Following after her, Smoke immediately noticed Sunset Blaze at a seat enjoying a dish of frozen yogurt. When she was about to have another spoonful, she saw the Raccoon Faunus and placed her treat to the side. "It's been a while, Smoke. Or should I call you something else," Sunset greeted the thief.

"You can call me whatever you want as long as I can do the same, Spitfire," Smoke flirted as he took a seat next to the Huntress-in-training. "So, what have you been up to lately," he asked with a small grin on his face.

"Oh, you know... Beating the heat here, went swimming with my friends yesterday, killed a swarm of giant mantis-like Grimm called 'Scykiri' in Forever Fall," Sunset listed before she had a spoonful of froyo and bit down on a piece of cookie with a crunch.

"Neat," Smoke Shadow replied. "Those Grimm are difficult to face off against. Can we go back to the part where you and that beautiful flower, Azalea, were in swimsuits?"

Sunset rolled her eyes at Smoke as he asked more about what she had said. "Maybe you'll see us wearing them in your dreams," Sunset retorted. "Besides, Azalea isn't the type to wear a bikini with somebody like you around."

"Oh, that's right," Smoke remarked as he pulled out his Scroll and started browsing through it. "She'd probably put on something a little less revealing. Kind of like this," Smoke said as he showed Sunset a picture on a social media account. The profile said that it was posted by Bianca Coloratura and the picture showed the rising star taking a selfie with Azalea, Sunset, and Vinyl around her with Silver, Celadon, and Layla swimming in the background. "Before you ask, I _am_ a fan of her music and that's why me and the others follow her online. Plus, all of you look good."

"No doubt about that," Sunset had to agree with that last part. "Why are you even here," she asked as she looked at Smoke.

"I'm just here because this girl wanted to go to Beacon Academy and I said I'd take her there. All of a sudden though, she chooses to come in here and get something to eat," Smoke explained as he pointed to the girl who was now paying for her very large frozen treat. Sunset could tell that he was being truthful again, but she was wondering who the girl was until Smoke Shadow caught her attention again. "But since I'm here, I do have something I plan to steal," he said and caused Sunset to glare at him. Acting quickly, Sombra stood up and was at Sunset's side when she felt his lips on her own. After a few seconds, the phantom thief separated from the Huntress student and licked his lips. "Mmm, vanilla," he remarked. "I'll be seeing you again, my lovely ray of sunlight."

While Sunset processed what just happened, she watched as Smoke Shadow left out the front door and brought her fingers to her lips. She went over the moment several times and had to admit that she liked the kiss before the sound of a young girl snapped her out of it. "Was he your boyfriend," the pink-haired girl asked and startled Sunset.

"NO! Nonononono! He's not my boyfriend," Sunset rapidly and furiously stated. "I just know him. Even if we did do a tango together during the Beacon Dance."

"You go to Beacon," the girl excitedly asked before taking a large scoop of her frozen yogurt and placed it in her mouth.

"Well, yeah," Sunset replied. "Smoke said that you wanted to head over there?" As the girl nodded, Sunset looked at the girl's face and wondered why it was a bit familiar to her. "I'll take you there. What should I call you," Sunset said and asked for the girl's name.

"You can call me Momo," the girl answered as she swallowed her fro-yo.

"Okay, Momo. Let's go to Beacon Academy," Sunset said as the two exited to shop, but the Smoke Shadow's kiss still lingered in Sunset's thoughts.

* * *

At Beacon Academy, most of Fragment Hunter was exhausted from another sleepless night. The only one who was perfectly fine was Azalea. "I swear, Azalea. How is it that you can sleep when your parents are doing the horizontal mambo and are loud enough to reach our rooms," Slate asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Maybe because I lived with them for about 17 years and got used to strange noises at home," Azalea remarked as she finished eating a plum. "Also, please don't mention my parents and anything related to rolling in the hay," she added with a disgusted tone as she threw away the pit.

"Speaking of your parents," Layla mentioned as she pointed to Terracotta Gaia and Ivy Dahlia Holstein walking into view with Ventus Gaia by their side.

"Hi, Azalea. Everyone," Ivy greeted.

"Hey, Mom," Azalea said. "Anything planned for today?"

"I'm actually meeting a few people in Vale about work back at the farm, so I'll be heading out now," Ivy told them. "Your father said that he wanted to help you and your friends train some more as well."

Terracotta nodded in response to what Ivy said. "You and Slate could use some more practice," the Bull Faunus said. "The others can join when they're ready."

"Alright. See you later, Mom," Azalea said as she was leaving, but remembered something from the other day. "Oh, Bianca invited us to a photo shoot and we wanted to know if you wanted to come with us."

"I'd love to," Ivy agreed. "You all have fun with your training while I'm out," she told her daughter as she left.

"Let's get going ourselves," Slate said as he stood next to Azalea and followed Terracotta to their training area.

After Terracotta, Ventus, Slate, and Azalea left, the other members of Fragment Hunter just talked about a few other things before Sunset showed up with somebody. "Hey guys, this is Momo. She was looking for Beacon and I helped her get here," the leader of Fragment Hunter explained as she introduced the pink-haired girl.

"Hello there," Layla waved to Momo. "I'm Layla."

"And there's Cereza, Celadon, Vinyl, Rebecca, and that's Team SLVR right over there," Sunset introduced the present members of Fragment Hunter to Momo.

"Hi! What weapons do you use? What kind of Semblances do you have? You think you could take on a Goliath," Momo asked excitedly and rapidly. "Oh, this is going to be so fun! I want to check out everything," she exclaimed and ran off to explore.

"Ah crap! Split up and help me find her," Sunset said as Momo vanished quickly. "No telling how lost she could get in this place."

"And there's no way that an energetic girl like her wouldn't get into trouble here," Cereza added. "Let's go."

* * *

After Fragment Hunter split up to look for Momo, Sunset was searching with Layla and Vinyl in the courtyard. " _Anyone find her yet,_ " Sunset asked with her Semblance.

" _She's not in the library,_ " Silver replied as he looked around with Team SLVR.

" _Haven't seen her around the dorms yet_ ," Cereza answered as she searched with Celadon and Rebecca.

" _Well, this is just great,_ " Rua deadpanned. " _It's not like we'll be able to find her immediately._ "

Just as Sunset was about to argue, Vinyl tapped her on the shoulder and pointed to Momo running by and passing Team SSSN. " _Found her,_ " Sunset told the others before she, Layla, and Vinyl gave chase. Following Momo, they saw her enter the ballroom and admired the area for a few moments before confronting her. "There you are. Don't run off like that. You have no idea where everything is," Sunset told Momo.

"Wanna play a game," Momo asked as she pulled out a yo-yo with the same emblem as her shirt and belt buckle on the sides of the apparent toy. "Try and knock my yo-yo out of my hand," she stated as she gave the simple rules.

"Really? You want to play a game," Layla questioned before she saw Momo move and strike at Layla's legs with the yo-yo. Grabbing her shin in pain, Layla hopped up and down on one foot before Momo used the string to grab Layla by the leg and pull her to the ground. Bring the yo-yo back and playing around with it, Momo giggled to herself as Sunset and Vinyl noticed that she seemed to be pretty skilled with the toy as a weapon.

"Come on, it'll be fun," Momo said as she began to do tricks with her yo-yo. As she performed a 'Walk the Dog', she moved the yo-yo next to Sunset's foot and manipulated her string so that it would catch Sunset's ankle like it did to Layla and tripped up the flame-haired girl. Vinyl watched as her friend and teammate fell to the floor and landed on top of Layla. Adjusting her sunglasses, Vinyl used her Semblance to fire an energy blast at Momo, but the girl spun her yo-yo around at fast speeds to act as a shield. "Wow! That's so cool," Momo exclaimed excitedly about Vinyl's Semblance. "I wonder what the rest of you are like? I'm going to go see," she mused out loud and used her yo-yo as a grappling hook to grab onto a chandelier. Pulling herself up above the girls, Momo landed on the other side of them and ran out the door to somewhere else on campus.

" _Guys, she's heading toward the courtyard again,_ " Sunset told everyone through the telepathic connection.

" _On it,_ " Rua replied.

* * *

Momo was running around with boundless energy as she checked out the school and stopped to look at the statue in the Beacon Courtyard. "Cool," she said to herself before she felt her wrist shaking and her foot twitched. When she noticed, Momo jumped onto the statue and several bystanders were wondering what she was doing. Almost immediately, Rua suddenly appeared and landed on the ground as if she was trying to grab Momo from above. "Oh, that's amazing! You can teleport?!"

"How did she know I was going to do that," Rua asked as Lapis and Silver joined by her side.

"We'll find out later," Lapis said as she held her trident at the ready. Thrusting it forward, Lapis used Water Dust to create a whip of water to try grabbing at Momo. However, the pink-haired girl jumped over the attack and a split in midair. When the first attack missed, Lapis continued to use her water whip to catch Momo.

In return, the younger girl kept dodging the attacks and even started to turn her movements into a dance routine and started to even sing a song by Bianca Coloratura. "Listen, girlfriend...can't you see?~ I'm all of the things that you'll never be~ I'm cool like the rain and I'm hot like the sun~ I'm a neon rainbow and you're no fun~" Seeing her dodge the attacks with ease and even turning it into a performance was irritating Lapis and Rua quite a bit as they believed the 14-year old was taunting them.

"I'm starting to understand how my sister felt when I bugged her before _she_ started Beacon," Lapis remarked.

"How is it that we can't handle one kid," Rua exclaimed angrily.

"Let me and Vixen try," Silver said to the girls and he subtly pointed to Vixen starting her illusions behind the statue. Vixen used her Semblance to create a fake version of the statue that came to life. With the Huntsman and Huntress apparently fighting the Grimm, Momo was captivated by the scene before she felt her wrists shaking again. Jumping up, she landed on Silver's back when he pounced at her in wolf form. "Hey, get off of me," Silver exclaimed as he tried to throw Momo of his back, but she kept holding on and cheering like she was part of a rodeo's bull riding event.

When Silver managed to throw Momo off of his back, she used her yo-yo to grab onto a lamppost and pulled herself onto the top of it. "That was so fun, guys! But I need to find somebody now. Let's play again later," she told Team SLVR before leaping off the post and started running toward the dorms.

" _She's going to the dorms now,_ " Vixen told the rest of Fragment Hunter who were connected telepathically. " _Think you girls can handle this kid,_ " Vixen asked.

" _I'm sure that we can handle a child,_ " Cereza replied.

* * *

Momo managed to enter the dormitory hall and started to look for a specific room. "Hmm, is this one his," Momo asked herself before she heard somebody speak to her.

"And what are you looking for exactly, little one," Cereza inquired as Celadon and Rebecca stood on either side of her.

"Catch me and I'll tell you," Momo said as she jumped up and bounced off of Celadon and Cereza like a springboard. Rebecca watched as she maneuvered past them and chased after the girl. As the two ran down the halls and jumped off of walls, the noise caught the attention of several other students. Momo watched as Rebecca used her Semblance to create a smokescreen to obscure the pink-haired girl's vision, but Momo just closed her eyes and continued running through the halls. Rebecca was surprised by the fact that Momo was easily making her way through the dorms without hitting any walls. Soon, Momo opened her eyes and she saw an open window. Jumping out of it, she waved to Rebecca and the other girls with a big smile on her face. "Hahaha! That was fun! Let's do that again later," she said before landing outside and ran off.

Cereza and Celadon were shocked at how the girl was able to avoid Rebecca when she used her Semblance. Looking out at where Momo was heading toward, they contacted Sunset and the others. " _She's going toward the arena,_ " Celadon told her team leader.

" _We'll corner her there,_ " Sunset instructed the others. " _Maybe Azalea and Slate can help out when we get there._ "

* * *

When Momo reached the arena, she saw Terracotta and Ventus sparring against Azalea and Slate. Azalea ran at her father and threw a punch, but the Bull Faunus caught the punch and lifted her above his head. While Azalea repositioned herself behind her father's back to prevent being tossed around, Slate retaliated by pulling out his revolvers and shot at Terracotta. Getting hit by the bullets, Terracotta released Azalea from his grip just before Slate kicked at the Huntsman a few times. After dealing the hits, Slate was soon grabbed by Ventus and thrown into the air. Taking advantage of being in the air with Ventus charging right at him, Slate spun around and reloaded his revolvers before firing at the Falcon Faunus. Several bullets managed to hit Ventus, but the Huntsman maneuvered around most of the shots and kicked Slate back to the ground. Azalea saw that Slate was falling as she dodged one of Terracotta's smashing punches and caught him just before he hit the floor. "You know, isn't it usually the other way around," Slate commented with a small blush as Azalea held him in her arms.

Azalea blushed herself before letting Slate go. Terracotta, Ventus, and Momo saw this and smirked at what they saw between the two. "Dad, I know you and Uncle Ven are taking things easy on us, but go ahead and give us a challenge. We're getting stronger every day, aren't we," Azalea mentioned.

"You are and you're right. But you do remember your mission out at Port Mako, correct? How tough those Grimm were," Terracotta reminded. "Every single day out in the real world is like a week in one of the Academies. You're going to go far, Azalea. Your friends as well. But only if you keep moving forward and learn from everything."

"Well, if she needs to learn, I say that we go with 'Heaven's Tornado', Terra," Ventus said and caught the attention of the younger fighters.

"Haven't done that in a while, Ven," Terracotta remarked. "Okay, let's do it." Ventus pumped a fist in celebration before he jumped in the air and grabbed Terracotta's hands. Now holding up Ventus as he did a handstand, Terracotta began to spin around while Ventus used the Wind Dust in his greaves to stir up the wind. As the two approached Slate and Azalea, they prepared to guard themselves when Ventus unleashed powerful kicks with blades of wind following his strikes. The attack was too powerful and they got knocked around before the brothers separated to the end the combination attack. Ventus delivered a powerful heel drop at Azalea while Terracotta struck Slate with a clothesline and the two members of Team FCSA were knocked into each other to end the battle when both of their Auras reached the red on the readout.

While Terracotta helped up Slate and Azalea, Ventus noticed the girl who seemed to have watched the sparring match. "That. Was. So. Cool! Where did you guys learn that," Momo asked excitedly as she jumped into the battlefield. "How strong are you two? You think that you can lift a house? What was your toughest battle with something? Do you like mazes and labyrinths? Is your favorite food chicken?"

As Terracotta and Ventus were asked a barrage of questions from an excited girl, Slate stood above the girl and grabbed the collar of her shirt. "What did we say about asking so many questions at once, Sugar Rush," he said to the girl.

"They won't understand me and know what to answer first," Momo said.

Azalea was wondering who the girl was until she remembered back when she first went out with Slate and he showed her a picture on his Scroll. "Slate," Azalea asked. "Is this..."

"Yup. This is her," Slate replied as he and the girl turned to Azalea. "Azalea, meet my little sister. Pinkamena Momo Quartz, this is Azalea Calla Holstein." Momo, or rather Pinkie, looked at Azalea and immediately noticed the physical features of the older girl. "If you're going to ask what I think you're going to ask, don't," Slate warned his little sister. "Her appearance is a little bit of a... sensitive issue for her."

"Are you Slate's girlfriend," Pinkie asked bluntly. "Because I never expected him to have a pretty girlfriend like you." Immediately when they heard Pinkie, Slate and Azalea began to stammer and awkwardly explain that they did go out with each other before. "Have you two kissed yet?"

"PINKIE," Slate yelled as he and Azalea blushed so furiously, they began to turn redder.

"Have you," Ventus teased.

"Uncle Ven," Azalea exclaimed with a bright red face that started to hide her freckles.

"I'm sure that they won't stop until you two actually kiss to answer them," Terracotta remarked with a grin. "Your mother would be the same, Princess."

As Azalea groaned at the idea of her mother teasing her and Slate, the Huntsman-in-training sighed and looked at his sister. "Just one quick kiss, got it," he told Pinkie and she nodded. Slate then approached Azalea and while it wasn't the ideal scenario for them to actually kiss each other, he got it over with and held Azalea's chin. While they began to lean toward each other, the doors slammed open and Fragment Hunter came bursting in.

"Spread out and find that pink-haired little... are we interrupting anything," Sunset said as she saw Slate and Azalea separating quickly while Terracotta, Ventus, and their target turned to the commotion. "There she is!"

Slate looked at his friends and then turned back to Pinkie with a stern look on his face. "You were exploring around here, weren't you Pinkie," Slate asked. Pinkie only giggled in response as she rocked back and forth on her feet. "Everyone, this is my sister, Pinkamena Momo Quartz," Slate said to Fragment Hunter and watched as their eyes widened. "As you probably found out, she's basically like Nora on a nearly-permanent sugar rush."

"A bit," most of Fragment Hunter said in the same deadpan voice.

* * *

After everything settled down, Terracotta, Ventus, Pinkie, and Fragment Hunter moved to the cafeteria to something to eat and talk about a few things. "So where are Mom and Dad," Slate asked his sister.

"They went to talk with this woman who's going to be Dad's boss," Pinkie explained as she started to chow down on an assortment of cupcakes. "Apparently, she was already in Vale for the Vytal Festival coming up, so she asked to speak with them over lunch somewhere. I think they said her name was Ivy or something."

Hearing that, Azalea messaged her mother on her Scroll about who she was talking with. A few seconds later, she got a reply saying that the last names of the people she was possibly employing were 'Quartz'. "Oh, my god! Slate, you and your family are probably going to live in Mirabelle," Azalea exclaimed as she read the reply she got and hugged him tightly. "You're going to stay at Plum Blossom Farms with me and my family!"

"I'm going to have a sister," Pinkie asked equally as excited.

"I can be like a sister to you," Azalea said to Pinkie as she released Slate, who fell onto the table in slight pain from Azalea's grip.

"That would be so amazing! I've always wanted to be a Huntress since my brother started getting into it," Pinkie stated as she moved next to Azalea and Sunset. "It would so cool to hang out with you and so many awesome Huntresses," she said as she hugged the girls she was next to.

"It would be fun to spend time with you, too," Azalea replied. "Hey, Slate. Don't you still have that thing from before what happened earlier?"

Slate thought about what Azalea said and remembered back when Fragment Hunter was bodyguarding Bianca Coloratura. "I'll be right back! Rua, help me out," he said. With a flash of light, Rua and Slate vanished only to reappear with a CD in hand. "Here you go, Gumball," Slate said as he gave the autographed CD to his sister.

Taking the gift into her hand, Pinkie's eyes widened as she saw the autograph. "You met Bianca Coloratura?! How," Pinkie asked in a _very_ loud voice.

"Indoor voice, Momo," Slate scolded before explaining. "Bianca's actually one of Azalea's old friends from Mirabelle. We bodyguarded her before."

Upon hearing what Slate said, Pinkie immediately grabbed a hold of Azalea's sweater and looked at the girl. "You know the Angel of Anima," she questioned with a big smile on her face.

"Yeah, Bianca's my childhood friend. She even wants me to come to a photo shoot later in the week," Azalea said. After hearing that, Pinkie squealed in delight and started bouncing around the room like a pinball as she started to ramble on fun things that she and Fragment Hunter could do. "Maybe it's a good thing that I didn't mention we were going to play at the upcoming concert," Azalea whispered to Sunset.

"Probably," Sunset commented. "Anyway, I actually met up with her when I was at Magnolia's and something weird happened there. Smoke Shadow dumped her on me after he flirted with me a bit. He even managed to kiss me before he left," Sunset explained.

"He _did,_ " Azalea gasped. "Wow. Slate nearly kissed me earlier before you guys showed up."

"Too bad we didn't show up a few seconds later," Sunset teased in order to embarrass her friend.

As everything started to turn chaotic, Terracotta caught everyone's attention. "Okay. Starting tomorrow, I'm going to start putting you through 'Advanced Training'," Terracotta told the teenagers. "You'll be needing it with the Vytal Festival up near the end of the season. And it's approaching fast. You better make sure everything is ready for fighting all kinds of opponents." Fragment Hunter all had serious looks of determination on their faces as they nodded to Terracotta.

* * *

 **And done! With this chapter, we're slowly approaching Volume 3 of the main RWBY story and the Vytal Festival. I hope you all enjoyed meeting Pinkamena Momo Quartz because she's going to play an** _ **IMPORTANT**_ **role in the story later. As for the next chapter, I'll be bringing in previously mentioned teams to join in Terracotta's 'Advanced Training'. So, expect a few fight scenes during Chapter 35 of Sideline. However, I might be focusing on a few other side projects for the next while because I have been putting a LOT of effort into this story recently.**

 **During the sparring match with Terracotta and Ventus against Slate and Azalea, the 'Heaven's Tornado' technique is from Kamen Rider W. I just used a variation of that because it was a pretty awesome move in the show and I thought that it could work with not only Ventus, but also Vinyl and a few other characters for RWBY as a Team Attack.**

 **Who's going to battle who in the next chapter? Will anybody get stronger as they endure what comes at them? Will we see any familiar faces in the advanced training session? How was Pinkie/Momo able to do all of those things earlier? Stick around to find out those answers and more in the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story".**

 **Until then, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	35. Advanced Training

**Hello everybody! WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of my RWBY Original Character fic, "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Fragment Hunter got a surprise visit from Slate's little sister, Pinkamena Momo Quartz. After being exhausted by her endless energy, the Beacon students hear that Terracotta is planning some 'Advanced Training' for them to get ready for the Vytal Festival Tournament. How exactly is this going to happen? Find out now.**

 **Attention!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things in this story that I own are my own Original Characters**

* * *

The twelve members of Fragment Hunter all gathered in the arena for Terracotta's Advanced Training course. They knew his regular training was intense, but worth every moment spent. After the Huntsman told them about the training yesterday, the members of Fragment Hunter were all determined to go through with what Azalea's father had in store for them. As they waited, they watched as Pinkamena Momo Quartz, also known as 'Pinkie' or 'Momo', chased Azalea's pet dogs around as they waited for other students to arrive. Soon, Team JNPR and Team CFVY of Beacon arrived to take their seats before any of the transfer students. After a while, everyone saw the different students from the other three Kingdoms show up. "Man, there are more people than I thought," Azalea remarked as she saw Team PRDT and Team GLOW taking seats while Team SSSN and Team CRDL entered her sight.

"Yeah, I guess they wanted to get some special training in as well," Lapis agreed.

Sunset thought that it would be an excellent opportunity to test her Semblance as she started to focus and read the minds of certain students. She heard Sun Wukong's current thoughts about the training before they shifted to wondering how Blake Belladonna was doing. Changing targets, Sunset focused her mind and Semblance on Lie Ren in order to learn about Team JNPR's recent mission. "Hmm. Ren really wanted to protect that village his team was at before," Sunset told the others.

"Maybe you should stop now," Celadon suggested. "You may want to save your Aura for the battles ahead."

"Just one more," Sunset said before closing her eyes and focusing on sensing the emotions in the room. Most of them were nervousness and anticipation, but she sensed something behind her that seemed happy. "Hey, is there somebody behind me," Sunset asked as she kept her eyes closed.

"That would be a 'yes', Firefly," Rua stated as she pointed to Penny Polendina sitting next to Sunset and Azalea.

"Salutations," Penny greeted. "It's so nice to see you again, Sunset. You too, Azalea."

"Hi, Penny," Azalea waved as she smiled at the girl from Atlas.

"Hey, Lea? Is she a cousin of yours," Silver asked as he pointed at Penny.

"No," Azalea replied. "All of my other family members are back at Mirabelle. This is Penny. Me and Sunset met her back when we were dress shopping for the dance." After introductions were made, Azalea saw something in the corner of her eye and she turned invisible out of reflex. "Don't say anything," she whispered to the others.

Wondering why Azalea used her Semblance, Fragment Hunter and Penny turned to see Team JADE walking in their direction. "Great," Rua bitterly said.

"Who are they," Penny asked.

"Some bullies who picked on Azalea before she came to Beacon," Layla answered as she glared at Envy, Jett, and Aoi. Watching them find a seat away from where Fragment Hunter was sitting, Layla gently nudged Azalea to signal that they weren't going to bother her now. "If they give us trouble, I'm sure your dad will 'volunteer them' for demonstrations," Layla remarked. Penny turned to see that a teammate of hers named 'Ciel Soleil' requested that they find another seat so that they could focus on the upcoming lesson.

Soon, everybody saw Terracotta enter the room with Ventus as the latter carried something in his hands. "Okay, everyone. Settle down," Terracotta said in his booming voice. "Today, I have some special training for you all. In the real world, you'll be battling in all sorts of conditions and restrictions. As such, today will consist of battles royale where up to four members from different teams will be dueling under special restrictions and handicaps." Everyone began to whisper among themselves about how students would be chosen to fight and what the handicaps would be. "Now, Ventus here is going to randomly grab these medals out of the case in his hands to determine what each battle will have and who will be fighting," Terracotta stated as he gestured to Ventus, who held several collectible coin-sized medals in his hand. "Each color will tell us who's fighting and what will be in the fight."

Everyone was confused by the idea of how the battles would be selected, but thought it would be interesting to see in action. "Okay! Let's get to work," Ventus said as he handed the case to Terracotta and rubbed his hands together. Taking back the case, he selected four medals at random and showed them to his brother. "This will be good," Ven stated as he looked at the white, green, and blue medals in his hand. "The green medal means that one Beacon student will be fighting, white is Atlas, and the blue one is Haven," the Falcon Faunus explained as he handed the case over to Terracotta to shuffle the placement of the medals.

"If nobody volunteers, I'll choose who battles," Terracotta said before he closed the case and returned it to Ventus. "Who wants to be the first to fight?" Seeing a few hands raised, Terra thought it over before selecting from the current volunteers. "Jaune Arc of Beacon's Team JNPR, Garnet Pepper of Atlas' Team GLOW, Sun Wukong of Haven's Team SSSN, and Duke Cobalt of Haven's Team JADE. You boys are battling first with no challenges aside from lasting as long as you can against three different fighters at once," Terra stated.

The boys all walked down to the main battlefield and as they did, Fragment Hunter got a better look at Garnet Pepper. The Atlas Academy student stood at 5'10" with a pale complexion, garnet red eyes, a dark red crew cut, and had black triangular dog ears on the top of his head. He wore a red jacket with gold epaulettes and gold buttons, matching red pants, a black pair of combat boots, and a pair of belts that carried several ammunition pouches. Garnet carried his weapon in its inactive form as he stopped to look at his opponents. "Greetings, gentlemen," he said in a polite and professional tone. "May the best man win this duel."

"Same to you," Duke Cobalt answered back as he and the others readied their weaponry and waited for Terracotta's signal.

Seeing of the selected fighters ready to battle, Terracotta told the four to begin the match. When they heard him, Garnet immediately activated his weapon and it transformed into an assault rifle that he used against Jaune and Duke. Jaune raised his shield to block the shots while Duke let them fly around him and miss. Fragment Hunter knew that Duke Cobalt's Semblance was the power to manipulate the trajectory of ranged attacks, so they understood what the member of Team JADE was doing. As Garnet stopped his attack and wondered why he missed Duke, Jaune and Sun charged at the Dog Faunus to strike him with their sword and staff respectively. Dodging Jaune's sword swings and grabbing at Sun's staff, Garnet disarmed the Monkey Faunus before switching his weapon into a shotgun mode and firing at Jaune. The leader of Team JNPR raised his shield to block the attack, but the force of it knocked him back enough for Garnet to kick him down while he was disoriented.

Sun and Garnet began to fight each other in hand-to-hand combat before Duke opened fire with his weapon's gun form. With each shot influenced by his Semblance, Duke's bullets flew around the arena like insects before they hit the two Faunus in their shoulders. With them distracted by the shots, Duke changed his weapon into its sword form and slashed away at the two. As their fight continued, Duke twirled his sword around as if he was showing off or distracting his opponents before kicking at them acrobatically or thrust his sword forward for a stab. "This guy's good," Sun remarked before activating his Semblance and summoning two clones of himself made of light. The clones charged at Duke and distracted him while Jaune approached and slashed at them with his sword. The clones vanished when they were hit, but Duke took the hit and was soon pushed back by Jaune bashing the Team JADE member with his shield.

As the fight went on and Garnet changed his weapon's form into a sniper rifle, nobody but Terracotta and Ventus noticed that Team JADE left the room. A few moments later, another person entered as each warrior's Aura levels were depleted enough to appear yellow on the readouts. The newcomer took a seat nearby Fragment Hunter, but stayed quiet until the match came to a close. "Alright, that's good enough," Terracotta said as Duke managed to aim his gun at Jaune's chest when the latter was caught in an armlock. "From these results, the winner would be Sun Wukong as he timed the use of his weapon and Semblance very well. Good work," the Huntsman told Sun. "Ven, time to choose the next match."

"Got it," Ventus said as he selected more medals randomly from his case. Picking a few, he showed them to Terracotta and they were revealed to be a blank medal, two green colored ones, and an orange medal. "Okay then," Ven said as he showed off the colored coins to the audience. "For this round, we'll need two Beacon students and one student from Shade Academy to fight without any of their main weapons."

"This round will focus on your strength and skills because some opponents will make sure you don't have a weapon to defend yourself with," Terracotta stated as he looked over the crowd. Seeing a few hands raised among the cautious students, Terracotta's eyes lingered on an eager Percival Ivory. "Ivory, you'll be the Vacuo student battling."

"Alright! This'll be fun," Percival exclaimed as he jumped down from the stands. "Who's gonna be my opponent," he asked as he looked at the students from Beacon before his gaze focused on his friends, Fragment Hunter. "How about any of you guys? Wait, is that Bianca Coloratura?"

Hearing what Percival said, everyone in the room turned to see the Dove Faunus sitting next to Team FCSA, who only smiled and waved to everyone. Pinkie gasped loudly at the sight of the idol before she screamed in excitement, hurting everyone's ears. However, Slate grabbed his sister by the arm before she could bombard the Dove Faunus with questions. "Moving on, let's have Pyrrha Nikos and Silver Wuruhi join in this sparring match," Terracotta stated.

"I'd love to see how you do against the Invincible Girl, Silver," Bianca said as she smiled at the Wolf Faunus of Team SLVR.

"Well... She may be one of the most skilled students here, but she's not invincible," Silver stated with a small blush as he stood up. "Nobody is."

"Still, I'd like to see how you can handle her and that Percival guy," Bianca said. "I bet that you'll do well."

"Alright, how about we let him go and fight so that he can prove it," Rua told Bianca as she pushed Silver past the Dove Faunus.

When Silver and Pyrrha joined Percival down on the battlefield, Terracotta signaled for the match to start. Silver started the match off by running toward Pyrrha and throwing a punch at her. She deflected the strike and countered with a punch of her own. Taking the hit, Silver waited for Pyrrha to attack again so that he could counter her. Throwing another punch, Pyrrha was caught off guard when Silver ducked underneath her arm and tried to deliver a palm strike to her chin. Using her Semblance to assist her, Pyrrha pushed Silver away and kicked at him. Taking the chance to attack, Percival threw his own punch at Pyrrha only to miss when she ducked and countered with a sweep kick. After Percival was knocked to the ground, he stood on all fours and leaped at Pyrrha like a wild animal. As he did, Pyrrha rolled onto her back to try and push the Faunus off of her with a kick. Succeeding, Percival went flying into Silver as the latter charged toward Pyrrha. As the two Faunus recovered from the impact with each other, Pyrrha stood ready in a boxing stance. "Man, she's tough and skilled even without weapons," Silver remarked.

"So can I," Percival said with an excited smirk as he extended his claws and looked at Pyrrha. Roaring loudly just like a large cat, Percival surprised everyone in the room before rushing at Pyrrha and slashing at her with his claws. Taking a few hits, Pyrrha managed to get used to the way Percival fought until Silver used his Semblance and attacked the both of them in his werewolf form. With Silver attacking with claws and fangs, Percival grabbed at his arms and prevented them from moving as he delivered a headbutt to Silver's face. Dazed from the strike, Pyrrha kicked at Silver to knock him away before she fought against Percival again.

Shaking off the pain and transforming back to normal, Silver charged at Pyrrha and grabbed at her hair before she attempted to knock him away again while she was fighting Percival. While Pyrrha was caught off her guard by the cheap trick, Silver began to punch away at her sides until Percival attacked the two of them. Using his Semblance, Percival created a bone-like spike on his right foot that began to vibrate like a chainsaw. Kicking at Silver and Pyrrha, the spike damaged the two of them as they separated before continuing their three-way battle. Punching, kicking, and slashing at each other, their Aura levels began to gradually lower until Terracotta called for the end of the match.

"That's enough, you three. Save some energy for if you want to battle someone else," Terracotta told the teenagers. As the three fighters stopped, everyone saw the Aura level readouts and noticed that Pyrrha's just turned yellow while Silver and Percival were equal at around half. "Now let this be a lesson. In a real fight, there is no such thing as playing dirty. The only thing that you should be focused on is surviving. You have to take what you can get and use what tricks you know," Terracotta lectured the students.

"I'll just get started on choosing the next few combatants," Ventus said as he chose the next set of medals. Opening his eyes, Ventus saw that he picked a pair of green medals, one orange medal, and a white medal from his case. "Okay. I'll need two Beacon students, an Atlas Academy student, and somebody from Vacuo again," he told the class.

Terracotta saw a few volunteers ready to battle, but his eyes lingered on his daughter, Azalea. "Azalea Calla Holstein," Terracotta said in a stern voice that immediately caught his daughter's attention as she stood up. "You'll be one of the four fighters in this regular match. Go collect your equipment while the others are chosen."

"Yes, Dad," Azalea replied as she began to move from the stands.

* * *

In the locker room, Azalea finished checking over her weapon and loaded fresh Dust into it. As she was leaving the locker room, she saw somebody standing near the exit and they turned their head toward her. Seeing that it was Duke Cobalt of Team JADE from Mistral, Azalea was hesitant about approaching him. "Don't worry, I'm only here to talk with you," Duke told her.

"Umm... O-okay," Azalea said in reply.

Duke looked at Azalea and exhaled before he spoke to her. "I have the same amount of respect for my teammates as much as you do, which is zero. I can't believe I've been assigned to them," he stated.

"R-really," Azalea asked as her eyes widened at Duke's words.

"I can't stand them at all," Duke exclaimed as he threw his hands in the air. "They have no concern for anyone but themselves, they bully any Faunus they meet, and I heard that you're their favorite target." Azalea only nodded silently to confirm what Duke said. "I respect the Faunus because they have abilities that normal people don't have. Just because they don't look like somebody else, that doesn't mean they should be treated like animals."

"Yeah. Some people just don't take the time to get to learn more about someone or something," Azalea added.

"Take your father for example," Duke said as he and Azalea walked back to the arena. "He's this enormous man with horns and scars that looks like he would beat up six guys for _not_ looking at him wrong. But you wouldn't expect him to be a family man unless you took the time to know more about him," Duke explained.

"That's my dad for you," Azalea stated. "Well, you go back up to the stands. I need to see who my opponents are."

Duke nodded and headed off while Azalea moved forward. "Let's see how the daughter of 'Gaia the Undaunted' does in a fight," he said as he waved to Azalea.

When Azalea was in the center of the arena, she saw that Vinyl was standing next to Ventus and checking over Rhythm Scratch while Penny smiled at the Cow Faunus and waved to her. Returning the gesture, Azalea watched as Ebony Rain of Team PRDT entered the room with her equipment and stood ready for battle. "Now that all of the combatants are here, shall we begin," Terracotta asked as he looked at the four girls. As Azalea pulled out Gladion and held it in front of her, the others prepared their weapons. Ebony raised her shield, Vinyl started playing music from Rhythm Scratch, and Penny's backpack opened up to reveal a set of swords that floated behind her. "Start now," Terracotta exclaimed as he walked away from the middle of the arena.

Vinyl started the battle by raising her hands and one of her feet before firing energy blasts from them to strike at her opponents. Ebony and Penny used their weapons to block the projectiles, but Azalea dodged and set Gladion to use Ice Dust. Waving her weapon like a magic wand, Azalea created a gust of ice and snow that tripped Vinyl when she tried to dodge. The member of Team SAFR reacted by creating a hard light disk for stability and started to spin around like a breakdancer until she was back on her feet. "Impressive," Penny said as she watched Vinyl's agility.

Ebony rushed for Vinyl and struck at her with her shield before the music lover created a sword and began to counterattack. Ebony's defensive weapon and experience allowed her to defend herself, but Vinyl's agility and movements made it hard for her to be hit. "Not bad," Ebony told Vinyl, who smirked in response before changing her sword into disks and threw them at Penny. Penny used her swords to block the attack before she began to go on the offensive. Moving her arms, Penny's blades followed and slashed at the girls. Vinyl and Ebony shot at Penny, but her blades spun around and deflected the attacks before a few of her swords transformed into laser guns. Before Penny could fire back, Azalea changed her baton's Dust setting to Fire and swept her weapon around to unleash a ring of flames that distracted her opponents and melted the ice from earlier.

As Vinyl, Ebony, and Penny covered their faces to shield themselves from the heat and steam covered the area, Azalea used her Semblance to turn invisible while her opponents' vision was obscured. Hiding from the other three, the Cow Faunus began to strike at all of them with Gladion after setting the weapon to use Lightning Dust. With each impact delivering an electric shock, Azalea began to take the lead in the battle as the Aura levels of the others began to fall. "Where is she," Vinyl said to herself after recovering from a barrage of hits from Azalea. While Vinyl and Penny looked around the battlefield for any sign of Azalea before even considering going after the others, Ebony closed her eyes and focused on hearing Azalea. After a few seconds, the Bat Faunus heard approaching footsteps and swung her weapon to her left. Azalea grunted as she was hit by Ebony's shield and became visible again, alerting the others and they turned their focus on the horned girl. Azalea tried to defend herself against Ebony's strikes, but was knocked away by her when she tried to dodge Penny's lasers and Vinyl's hard light weapons.

"Oh, I'm in trouble," Azalea muttered to herself before seeing Vinyl speed toward her and use Rhythm Scratch to create hard light claws. Using her baton to try and block Vinyl's strikes, Azalea avoided more damage from her friend before Ebony shot at both of them. Vinyl reacted by creating hard light disks to act as shields from the bullets and as chakrams to attack Azalea and disarm her. With Gladion out of her hand and Vinyl stepping on it to prevent her from retrieving it immediately, Azalea was left open to Penny's next attacks. Trying to block or dodge the Atlesian girl's swords, Azalea was soon trapped when Penny's swords appeared behind her and began to spin around like a bladed fan that would slice her up like a blender. "I'm _really_ in trouble now," Azalea voiced to herself as Penny's weapons charged up lasers and opened fire on her. Raising her arms to defend herself from the blast, everyone watching was shocked to see the lasers harmlessly bend around her body and knocked away the swords when they were struck instead. "Huh? What was that," Azalea questioned.

Everyone was wondering what Azalea did before Vinyl used her hard light sword to slash at the Cow Faunus, but was surprised that the sword bent around her. Realizing that Vinyl's weapon and Penny's lasers were ineffective against her, Azalea smiled as she slowly walked toward Vinyl and cracked her knuckles. As the battle went on, Fragment Hunter began to discuss what they saw earlier. "Why did that laser and Vinyl's sword not hurt Azalea? Her Aura wasn't even damaged that much," Lapis remarked as she checked the readout.

"I think I know how," Sunset said and caught the attention of her friends. "Azalea's Semblance bends light around herself to make her invisible. So, it would defend her from light-based attacks like lasers and Vinyl's weapons."

"That is _so cool_ ," Pinkie shouted in excitement. "Go, Azalea!" Vinyl tried to hit Azalea with a roundhouse kick, but the latter ducked and grabbed her in retaliation. Throwing Vinyl to the ground, Azalea turned her attention to Ebony and tried to dodge the Bat Faunus' rifle shots. While some hit her in the arms, Azalea's Aura defended her enough to keep her in the fight and start facing off against Ebony in hand-to-hand combat. When Ebony tried to swing her shield to strike at Azalea, the Cow Faunus countered by grabbed her weapon and headbutting Ebony in the face. While the Shade Academy student recoiled in pain, Azalea threw the shield toward Penny, who deflected it with her swords before throwing them at the three other girls.

As all of them dodged the weapons, Azalea rolled to where she saw her Dust Baton on the ground and grabbed it. Setting it to use Lightning Dust, Azalea's body began to glow as she used her Semblance's 'Flash Bang' along with Gladion's current Dust setting. With electricity surging everywhere, Azalea struck all three of her opponents with her attack as Penny's weapons drew the lightning toward them. Vinyl and Ebony screamed in surprise and pain at the attack while they stood near the swords closest to themselves, but Penny only looked on in surprise as the electricity began to travel from her swords to herself because of the wires connecting them to her backpack. When she was hit by Azalea's technique, she cried out before the attack stopped and she wobbled around. "Father, the cricket's telling me to not go find the whale," Penny managed to mutter before collapsing to the ground face first.

"I think that's the match," Terracotta said as he stepped forward to check on Penny. After a few seconds, Penny opened her eyes and said that she was fine. "This kind of battle should be something that you learn from," Terra stated as he turned to the other students. "Your Semblance can aid you in the most dire of situations, even when you least expect it. Which is why it's always a good idea to experiment with your powers," he told everyone before turning to his daughter, who was helping Vinyl to her feet. "Azalea, you're doing so well," Terracotta said to himself.

"Okay, I think that we have time for one more match," Ventus exclaimed as he selected the last few medals at random. Choosing from his case, Ven showed Terracotta a green medal, an orange medal, a white medal, and a medal that had a dog design on it. "Oh, this one will be interesting," Ventus said with a grin on his face.

"We'll need different students from Vacuo, Atlas, and Beacon for this match," Terracotta told the students before choosing the three volunteers. "Sunset Blaze, Percival Ivory, and Oren Maxwell. You'll be fighting in the last match alongside somebody that you probably wouldn't expect," he announced before bringing his fingers to his mouth and whistling loudly. When he did, everyone heard barking and watched as Dante appear from a corner of the room. Terracotta scratched the dog behind his ears before looking at the students he selected. "Sometimes, enemies will have trained animals that will attack you when you get to close and you'll have to worry about territorial creatures on your missions. You'll all be fighting with Dante attacking you at every chance he gets," Terracotta explained.

"My Aura's recharged, so it's not a problem," Percival said as he jumped down onto the battlefield again. "Plus, I've seen what this guy is capable of," he remarked as he put a hand on Dante's head.

"Azalea told me about him, too," Sunset stated as she walked down to the battlefield.

Oren Maxwell marched to the center of the room and everyone from Fragment Hunter took note of his attire. When they first met him, he was wearing a proper Atlas Academy uniform and he even had a tuxedo with gloves at the Beacon Dance. Right now, he was wearing a modified version of typical Atlesian soldier uniforms. Maxwell had black pants, a belt with pouches, combat boots, and white-gray body armor on his chest and right arm. His robotic left arm had nothing concealing it and was on display for everyone to see the silver color. His chest armor and left arm had an emblem that looked like a tree with its branches in the shape of a closed hand. "Shall we begin," Maxwell asked as he raised his left arm up.

At Terracotta's signal, Dante jumped at Percival and tried to bite down on the Faunus. Percival countered by using his Semblance to create bone spikes on his forearms in order to protect himself before kicking Dante back. While he did that, Sunset approached Percival and her jacket began to glow as she activated the Fire Dust in it. Throwing fire-infused punches at him, Sunset managed to deal a good chunk of damage before Maxwell intervened. His fist transformed into a hammer that he swung into Sunset and knocked her away. Skidding on the ground from the hit, Sunset saw Maxwell's limb was also his weapon when she stood up. Pointing his arm at Percival, Maxwell's robotic limb unfolded to reveal it could also work as a pump-action shotgun when he fired a round at the Vacuo student. Percival blocked the shot by using his Semblance to create a shield similar to Rua's and even separated it into twin blades that he used against Maxwell.

As the boys clashed weapons, Sunset used her Fire Dust jacket to create rings of flame underneath them and snapped her fingers when she made them generate fiery explosions. While she smirked at the damage she dealt, Dante pounced onto her back and used his Semblance to create a wall in front of her. As she smashed into the barrier, Dante started to use his Semblance again by creating a spiked barrier on his tail to act as a mace. Sunset was barely able to dodge the attack when Percival and Maxwell attacked the both of them. Sunset was forced to dodge the attacks that came her way when all three opponents focused on her. "Grimm paste," Sunset muttered to herself when Dante created another wall that Sunset backed up into. As Dante growled and kept the barrier up to prevent Sunset from escaping, Percival and Maxwell started to attack her with their weapons. _"Oh man, I'm in a pinch here,"_ Sunset thought to herself. _"What would the others do? Rebecca would make a smokescreen, Rua would teleport out of this, Cereza would slow down time, Azalea would blind them,"_ Sunset told herself mentally as she went over how the others could escape her situation. _"This is so frustrating! I could just scream,"_ Sunset thought before actually screaming out loud. When she did, her body flashed a silvery-blue color and sound waves of the same color came from her mouth.

Everyone had to cover their ears when the noise happened, but the loud scream affected some more than others as Ebony, Garnet, Velvet, and Dante all cried out in pain. As the dog whimpered in pain from the noise, the barriers keeping Sunset trapped immediately vanished and she stumbled back. When she did, Sunset stopped screaming and took note of what she just did. "Was that Lapis' Semblance," Sunset asked herself. Looking over at the stands, Sunset noticed that Lapis' silvery-blue Aura was shining briefly before fading. _"My Semblance can connect with minds and emotions because it can connect with other people's Auras... Can I actually use other people's Semblances,"_ Sunset thought to herself while everyone wondered what happened. "Oh, this is gonna be good," Sunset said with a smirk as she adjusted her stance and faced her opponents. Percival and Maxwell recovered from the sonic scream enough to see Sunset staring them down and prepared themselves. When Percival charged at Sunset, she dodged his claws and retrieved her sword by using Layla's telekinesis as her body briefly flashed the same color as Layla's Aura. As the sword flew toward her, it slashed away at Percival and Maxwell before she grabbed it.

"How does she have two different Semblances," Maxwell questioned as he changed his robotic arm back to normal in order to defend himself from any of Sunset's next attacks.

"I don't know," Percival said with a giant grin on his face. "But she seems to have broken her limits. Let's do the same," he declared as his ivory-colored Aura coated his body and he created a bone-like set of armor covered in spikes. Running toward Sunset, Percival slashed at her with his claws and punched with the spiked knuckles on his new armor. Sunset dodged the attacks and threw her palm forward, releasing an energy blast like Vinyl. Percival was hit in the face by the projectile and sent flying into Maxwell, who punched him away before attacking Sunset himself. Throwing a punch with his left arm, Maxwell tried to hit Sunset to only find her sudden move much faster after she dodged. As she moved, she retaliated with a flurry of fire-enhanced punches and kicks.

"This is awesome," Sunset exclaimed as she started to use Celadon's Semblance and unleashed a barrage of gemstone projectiles like a shotgun. When the stones hit the boys, Sunset laughed in excitement before her body flashed a reddish-purple and she teleported behind Maxwell to kick him in the back. Teleporting again, Sunset grabbed Percival and threw him into Maxwell so that they crashed into each other. "I love this so much," Sunset said as she prepared to continue the fight. Before she could aim her weapon's rifle form, Terracotta stepped in and grabbed the weapon for a second. When he released his grip, the rifle became much heavier and Sunset had to drop it. "It's over already," Sunset asked.

"Considering that your Aura is that low, yes," Terracotta replied as he pointed to the readout. While Sunset wasn't hit that much after discovering her Semblance's new ability, her Aura levels had lowered enough to be eliminated from tournament fights. "Seems that your new power to imitate other powers takes more Aura to use each than they do for the original," Terracotta surmised. "A pretty fair trade for using any power that you know of."

"Yeah. That makes sense," Sunset agreed.

"Be sure to keep an eye on your Aura levels because you'll never know how much you'll use up in an intense battle," Terracotta told everyone. "Class dismissed. You'll be receiving more of these advanced lessons from now until the Vytal Festival begins. I'll see you all next time."

* * *

"That! Was! AWESOME," Pinkie shouted as she bounced in place with excitement. "You can copy Semblances and Azalea can deflect lasers! You guys are so cool," she said to Sunset as Fragment Hunter and Bianca all sat around the courtyard.

"How did you even do that," Lapis asked. "I mean, I know that I first discovered my Semblance when I was cornered by a Grimm and screamed in fear, but how did you find out about that whole 'Semblance mimicry' thing?"

"I was trying to figure out how any of you guys could've escaped my situation, but there were so many ways that you could've gotten out that I couldn't think of one for myself," Sunset explained. "I just screamed in frustration and that was it. Then I just thought of how each of you could fight with your Semblances and copied them."

"Seems like your new ability is the opposite of Envy's," Rebecca stated. "She needs to touch people to drain them and their Semblance while you only need to know about who you're imitating in order to use their powers."

"Plus, using another person's Semblance is more taxing than how they use it," Cereza added.

"Still, this is _really_ cool," Sunset said with a smile as she started to use Rebecca's Semblance to create a small puff of smoke from her hands. Manipulating it to change its shape, the cloud of smoke took the form of a gecko before dissipating. "I think we can get closer as teams this way."

"Yeah, power and magic of friendship. We get it," Rua said with a playful smile on her face. "Let's just do something before we break out into a musical number."

"Speaking of music, why'd you show up, Bianca," Azalea asked her childhood friend.

"Kurenai gave me the day off and I wanted to see what a class of yours was like," Bianca answered. "Also, I wanted to tell you guys that the photo shoot was rescheduled for tomorrow afternoon."

"Photo shoot?! You guys are going to be going to a photo shoot with Bianca Coloratura," Pinkie asked as she started to shake in excitement.

"Settle down, Rock Candy," Slate told his sister as he kept her still.

"Yeah. You guys can make it, right," Bianca asked.

"We can," Azalea said. "And mom's coming to, so we better tell her about it."

"Alright! I can't wait for you all to join me," Bianca exclaimed as she flapped her wings and raised her arms.

* * *

 **And I'm finished with this chapter! I've been wanting to get to the important points in this story for Sunset and Azalea for a while because of their Semblances. Azalea's new discovery of her power is going to definitely come in handy.**

 **Now for music during each scene. Percival's battle scenes would be accompanied by "Ride On Right Time" from Kamen Rider OOO, Azalea's battle would have the song "Destiny's Play" from Kamen Rider Kiva (thanks to Vinyl's weapon, Rhythm Scratch), and Sunset's comeback with her Semblance would have "Giant Step" from Kamen Rider Fourze playing. All of these tracks would double as the theme music for each character.**

 **Next time, we'll have a bit of another breather chapter as Bianca and Fragment Hunter go with Ivy to a photo shoot. We'll have most of the girls dress up in nice outfits, there will be some more insight to a few characters, and mentions of a few upcoming characters.**

 **Until then, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	36. Strike A Pose

**Hey readers. WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Terracotta had our heroes and their classmates take part in his 'Advanced Training' course and some of them discovered a few new things about their abilities. But right now, the members of Fragment Hunter are now going to spend some more time with Bianca Coloratura as she invited them to come to a photo shoot she's taking part in.**

 **Strike a pose!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters featured in this story**

* * *

Bianca Coloratura waited outside of an agency in Vale as she kept an eye out for Azalea and the rest of Fragment Hunter. Soon, a purplish-red flash of light appeared in front of her and the large group arrived with Terracotta Gaia, Ivy Dahlia Holstein, and Pinkamena Momo Quartz. Rua Amaranth fell down onto one knee and was breathing heavily while Ivy Dahlia Holstein used her Semblance to heal the girl and restore her stamina. "I think I'm getting better at this," Rua mentioned as she stood back up.

"You just transported about 15 of us to this place in one go," Silver said as he put an arm around his teammate and friend. "I'd have to agree on that, Rua."

"I'm glad that you all made it here in time," Bianca told the group. "Hi, Auntie Ivy," the Dove Faunus greeted as she hugged the older Faunus woman.

"Hello, Bianca. How's Mirabelle's little angel doing," Ivy greeted back with a smile on her face as she returned the hug.

"Great! It's been really busy, but I'm having fun with all the work I'm doing," Bianca said. "How's Mom doing? The boutique isn't becoming a hassle for her alone, is it?"

"Actually, Valencia got hired to work in your place just a week after you left," Ivy answered.

"My cousin," Azalea questioned. "Well, Valencia always did enjoy fashion," she remarked as she carrying a suitcase for her mother.

"Speaking of, let's go inside and get set up for the shoot," Bianca told everyone as she escorted the group inside. When they all walked inside, they saw that there were numerous people working to get articles sent to publishers, schedule appointments with celebrities, and submit photos for approval. Some workers greeted Bianca as she brought her friends to the main photography studio. "Kurenai, they're here," Bianca called out to her manager.

Kurenai put down his Scroll and turned to see Bianca's guests. "Excellent. I'll go talk with the photographer and have them choose who joins you, Bianca," the man said before walking over to a corner of the studio where a woman was taking pictures of a young model. "Hotaru, Miss Colortura's guests have arrived and I wanted you to see if any of them would be fine to join her."

"Take five," Hotaru told the model as she went to check out Fragment Hunter, Terracotta, Ivy, and Pinkie. Looking at each of them, the photographer slowly inspected the group. "Hm. Mm-hmm. Okay. I see. She could do," Hotaru said to herself as she checked each member of Fragment Hunter. When she looked at Azalea and Ivy, Hotaru immediately turned around to face Kurenai and Bianca. "Those two Cow Faunus are going to join the shoot, Miss Coloratura," Hotaru told the Dove Faunus. As Bianca expressed her happiness, Hotaru continued looking over the others before she pointed to certain members of the joint Huntsman team. "Flame Hair, Emerald Dress, Gem Eyes. You three will be joining them while the rest of you help me," Hotaru told Fragment Hunter as she pointed to Sunset, Celadon, and Cereza.

"Come on, let's go to the dressing rooms," Bianca said as she guided the girls joining her.

* * *

When the girls arrived at the dressing room, Bianca told them to find outfits that they liked to put them on. While they searched the racks of clothes, a few of the other models in the room looked at the Faunus girls in disgust. Sunset seemed to notice the feelings from the models and glared at them in response, earning a few annoyed glares from the models herself. Ignoring it, Sunset kept looking for an outfit to wear while the glaring models left the room. "Oh, this one looks nice, but I don't think it's my style," Cereza remarked as she looked at a dress before putting it back.

"Oh, look at this," Celadon said as she found a one-piece swimsuit that had a watermelon rind pattern. "This is kinda cute. You think that you would wear it, Azalea?"

Azalea shook her head and blushed at the idea of wearing the swimsuit. "I'm not wearing that kind of pattern... or cow print. It just isn't something I would wear. On the other hand, my mom and cousin would wear those things in a heartbeat," Azalea told everyone.

"You'd look great in them, though," Ivy said as she managed to find an outfit that she had in her suitcase that Azalea brought for her. "Oh, this looks lovely for the occasion. I'm going to go put it on." After a few minutes, Ivy was now wearing a red dress with a matching red coat, a black belt around her waist with a crescent-shaped buckle, and a red pair of flats. With the new outfit, she also wore a large sun hat decorated with a few roses, a white beaded necklace, a pair of teal earrings shaped like spades, and a pair of purple gloves. "How do I look, girls," Ivy asked.

Sunset and Celadon were speechless when they saw Ivy's new attire, but Azalea was thankfully much more vocal. "Mom, you look beautiful in that," Azalea responded.

"She looks beautiful in everything," Bianca said. "Everyone back home knows that."

"Especially Terracotta," Ivy added as she looked at her reflection in a mirror and admired the outfit she was wearing.

"Let's get you started while the others find their own clothes for the shoot," Bianca told Ivy.

As the two Faunus went to meet up with the photographer, Hotaru, the rest of the girls continued searching through the racks of clothes for anything they liked. About halfway through searching, Sunset decided to look through the case that Ivy and Azalea brought to see if there was anything for the latter. "Hey, look what I found," Sunset said as she pulled out the green crop top that Azalea had once tried on when the girls were all shopping for her black dress. "Did your mom pack this in here?"

Azalea held the top in her hands and looked at it while the other girls all spoke to her. "You should definitely put it on," Celadon told the Faunus girl. "It's cute and stylish. Perfect for today."

"I'm... not sure," Azalea replied hesitantly.

"Oh, I'm sure you would look amazing in it," Cereza remarked as she held out a red dress similar to Celadon's usual dress as it was a sleeveless cheongsam with a golden floral design. "While _I'm_ going to be catching eyes in this dress," she stated as she went to go change.

Soon, Bianca came back to see how the girls were coming along with their clothing choices for the shoot. "Everything okay in here," Bianca asked.

"Just trying to convince Azalea to wear something that she bought a while ago," Sunset told the Dove Faunus before turning to her friend. "Azalea, nobody's going to say anything bad about you if you wear that. Besides, I don't think they'll mess with a girl who has a dad that could bench press one of those new Atlesian Paladin mechs," she reassured Azalea and referenced the girl's warrior father.

Azalea thought it over as the others left to get changed or meet up with Hotaru. Azalea was soon alone with only one other model in the dressing room with her. "Hey, your mom and friends seem really supportive," the young woman told Azalea. The Faunus looked to see that the model had platinum blonde hair with a stripe of light blue running down one side, freckles on her cheeks, and sea green eyes. "I think you're lucky to have people like them around. My family was the worst because they treated me like garbage," she said. "You actually have people looking out for you and they try to help you out."

"Thanks," Azalea replied to the girl.

"Honestly, you can just think of the whole shoot as one big game of dress up like when you were probably a kid. Just with more options that fit you and having your best pictures on display somewhere," the model remarked. "That make it sound a little easier?"

"...A little," Azalea said hesitantly. Thinking it over again, Azalea went to get changed into her new outfit. As she left, the model's body began to ripple and change when Azalea couldn't see her. After the ripple faded, the girl's body changed into that of Veronica Moonstone, aka 'Rouge'. Rouge smiled to herself and left the room just before Azalea came out in her outfit. "Where did she go? More photos," Azalea asked herself when she saw that the dressing room was empty. Azalea turned back to look at her reflection in a nearby mirror and admired the outfit she was now wearing. She was wearing her green crop top, a pair of black jeans, and white sneakers for the main outfit. She also wore a pair of green bracelets on her left wrist, a belt with a gold-colored buckle, and a butterfly hairclip that was mostly green with a pink trim. "Maybe, I should go meet up with the others," Azalea said to herself as she left the dressing room.

* * *

Ivy, Bianca, Sunset, Cereza, and Celadon all had their pictures taken while Azalea was still in the dressing room and the rest of Fragment Hunter helped around the studio. Mostly, the boys were carrying props and equipment for Hotaru while she took photos. However, some of the girls were using their Semblances to create special effects for some of the pictures such as a smokescreen from Rebecca and Layla using her telekinesis to keep certain objects in place. While they would normally object to using their powers in a mundane way, Terracotta told them that it was a good way to get some practice in while they were off campus. "Okay, now where's that other girl," Hotaru asked after she finished taking Ivy's final photos and inserted a new memory card into her camera.

"Azalea's probably just getting changed now," Layla said as she stopped using her Semblance.

"There she is now," Rua stated as she saw Azalea approaching the group in her new outfit. Everyone was amazed at how pretty Azalea looked in her outfit. Hotaru immediately started taking pictures of Azalea and several members of Fragment Hunter helped with effects. "Hey, where's Slate? He might want to see her in this outfit," Rua asked as she saw Slate wasn't around.

"Oh, he was told to go deliver some photos of other models to Hotaru's boss. He'll be back in a bit if he doesn't get lost," Pinkie told the others.

After Hotaru got enough pictures of Azalea, Bianca walked over to her friend to talk with her. "Azalea, you look great in that! I kinda see you walking around Mirabelle wearing that instead of your sweaters," Bianca said.

"Thanks, Bianca," Azalea replied. "Hey, you remember all those times we went to visit Nashihana? The summer festivals were always so fun."

"Yeah. Wearing yukata was always a bit of a pain at first with my wings, but they were just so cute," Bianca remarked.

"Oh, that's a great idea," Hotaru declared. "We have three yukatas in wardrobe that you can pick from. I'll need to change the backgrounds for the photo while you two put them on," the photographer said.

"I'll go help you out. Besides, I want to wear that last one," Celadon told the girls.

* * *

After getting everything set up, Hotaru and Fragment Hunter waited for Azalea and Bianca to show up with Celadon. As they did, Slate found his way back to the group. "Hey, sorry I'm late. This place bigger than I thought," he apologized.

"Don't worry about it, dude," Vinyl told him.

"You're just in time for the girls dressing up in yukata," Sunset said. "Here they come now."

Slate adjusted his hat before he turned to see the girls in their outfits. "Well, I'm sure that they'll loo- GREAT GAIA'S BLESSING!" As Slate faced the girls, he saw each of them wearing a different yukata, mostly exclaimed what he did when he saw Azalea in her outfit. Celadon wore a black yukata with a flower pattern in a proper manner, Bianca wore a pink yukata in an off-shoulder fashion, and Azalea wore a light blue yukata in a way that exposed her cleavage.

Everyone was captivated by how the girls looked, but Hotaru asked for the three to stand in front of a backdrop that made the illusion of the girls being in the city of Mistral. Taking a few photos of the girls while everyone stared, Hotaru managed to get a number of good shots. "Alright! Excellent! Perfect! All of these are great," the photographer told everyone. "Go ahead and change back or into something new while your friend Cereza is up next."

"Okay, Hotaru," Bianca said as she, Celadon, and Azalea went to change out of their yukata while Cereza started posing for Hotaru. "Did you see Silver and Slate while we were wearing these," Bianca asked with a grin on her face.

"Slate was obviously more vocal, but I could tell they enjoyed the sight of us in these," Celadon remarked as she looked back at Azalea. The Cow Faunus only blushed at the fact that Slate was watching her during the shoot. "Come on, let's go get you changed into something a bit less revealing," Celadon told Azalea.

Reaching the dressing room, the girls saw a few other models finishing up their makeup when they entered. "Oh, great, It's the freaks and one of their friends again," one of the models said as she closed a bottle of mascara.

"Can't those animals just find some other place to be," a second model voiced as she sat down and checked her black hair.

"What was that," Bianca asked with an angry tone as she changed out of her yukata and put on her regular sweater and skirt.

"You Faunus shouldn't even be here," the first model declared. "You're not even human."

"Just go and leave our sights, you freaks," the second model stated.

Azalea just curled up in the fetal position while Celadon and Bianca both glared at the girls insulting the latter and her childhood friend. "Oh, you don't get to say that to my friend," Bianca told the girls as she raised a fist up to the black-haired model.

"What, is Bianca Coloratura going to do something about it," the first model taunted as she poked a finger into Bianca's shoulder.

"She won't, but I can," Celadon said as she used her Semblance to cover her hands in gemstone-like armor and assumed a martial arts stance while she was now wearing her usual green dress. The models scoffed and left after they finished their hair and makeup, leaving the girls on their own. "I guess that a model's life isn't all that glamorous after all," Celadon remarked as she turned to Bianca.

"It really isn't," Bianca confirmed. "You okay, Azalea?"

"I... just need a little time alone," Azalea answered her friend while she was still in the fetal position.

Bianca and Celadon looked at each other in concern before they started heading back. "Hey, some outfits I made are on that far rack if you want to try them out," Bianca told Azalea just before she exited the dressing room.

"Thanks," Azalea quietly replied back while she looked at her feet. After a few silent moments, Azalea went to find a new outfit to wear. She soon found a long-sleeved red-colored scoop neck shirt with a small keyhole on the chest area. Finding a light blue skirt and a pair of boots to go with it, Azalea finished changing into the new outfit just as she heard a knock on the door. "Hello," Azalea said as she faced the door.

"It's Slate. Celadon said you were upset," a voice said from the other side of the door. Opening it, Azalea saw her teammate with his hand behind his head. Letting him in and shutting the door, Azalea sat back down and looked at her reflection. "That's a nice top you have on," Slate told her.

"Thanks... Bianca said she made it herself," Azalea replied.

"Are you okay," Slate asked as he tried to look Azalea in the eye. "Bianca said that some other models called the two of you 'freaks'."

Azalea sighed and moaned before turning to Slate. "I keep making nice friends that don't mind my heritage, but there are still people who hate the Faunus just because we aren't like them," Azalea said. "I keep hearing that kind of stuff and worse directed at me, but I didn't think Bianca would be discriminated like any other Faunus. She's this amazing girl with a load of talents that she shares with everyone. Her singing, her dancing, her fashion. She's trying to share it all with Remnant and mostly ignores whatever bad things people say about her," she said with a sad smile when she listed everything about Bianca. "But, what about me? I'm just a farm girl that people call a 'Dairy Cow' because of my horns, figure, and home," she voiced sadly as she slumped in her chair again.

Slate looked at how upset Azalea was, Slate put his hand on his shoulder and his hat on her head. "Azalea, you need to think of yourself in a more positive way," Slate told her. "You're smart, strong, skilled, cute, beautiful, and can be stubborn at times when you set your mind to something. You just found out that lasers don't even hurt you. Do you even remember your fights with Grimm like that King Taijitu, the Pendra, and even the Leviathan? And don't even get me started on your fight with Tremor," he listed as he counted on his fingers. "You're an absolutely amazing girl that I've gotten to know and if people don't see those things about you, then you've got to prove it to them!"

Azalea watched with tear-filled eyes and a growing smile as Slate said all those nice things about her. To Slate's surprise, she suddenly hugged him tightly. Slate was caught off-guard by the strong and sudden embrace, but didn't reject it as Azalea's tears fell onto his poncho. "Thank you. I needed that," Azalea told him as she looked him in the eyes. Slate only smiled back as the two held their gaze and began to inch closer to each other. Soon, their lips met and the world around them just faded away as they kissed. After what seemed like a magical moment that they didn't want to end, Slate and Azalea separated from each other. "That... felt right," Azalea managed to voice as she looked at Slate.

"Y-yeah," Slate agreed as the two blushed and shyly looked at each other. "Well, I suppose we should get you back to the photo shoot. Otherwise, people are going to ask where we are," Slate said.

"Oh, right," Azalea acknowledged.

As the two left the dressing room, Azalea still had Slate's hat on her head. "You know, my hat looks great with that outfit you're wearing," Slate said as the two made their way to their destination. As they were walking and speaking with each other, Sunset was hiding in a corner alongside Terracotta and Pinkie. The three smiled as they watched Azalea with Slate, fully knowing what happened thanks to Sunset's Semblance. At the same time, a disguised Rouge smirked to herself as Azalea passed by her.

* * *

As the photo shoot went on, some of the other members of Fragment Hunter joined in the pictures with Bianca. Several of the girls changed outfits throughout the rest of the shoot, but the ones that changed clothes the most were Azalea and Ivy. When Hotaru got enough photographs of the group and Bianca, Azalea went to go change out her current outfit. She was wearing an off-shoulder black top with a pink butterfly design on the chest, her butterfly hairclip and white sneakers from earlier, a black and red tiered skirt over a pair of jeans, and a pink belt with a silver butterfly belt buckle. "This outfit is so cute," Azalea said to Bianca in the dressing room. "I'm still amazed that you made it yourself."

"I think that I had you in mind when I designed it," Bianca remarked. "You always did love butterflies."

"Yeah. They're always so pretty," Azalea agreed as she started changing back into her usual clothes. "Guess you'll want this back now that the photo shoot's over?"

"Nah, you can keep it. The outfit with the red top, too," Bianca told her friend.

"Really?"

"Of course," Bianca replied as Azalea put her sweater back on. "You looked too beautiful in them to only wear them once. Besides, I actually have something else for you as well," the Dove Faunus said as she went to a corner in the dressing room and picked up a large bag that she handed to Azalea. "Consider this a gift for getting into Beacon like you always wanted."

Azalea took the bag and looked inside to see what Bianca had made for her. "Oh my god... You made this," the Huntress-in-training asked as she looked at what was in the bag.

"Yeah. It took a long time, but I think it's worth it," Bianca stated as she smiled to herself.

"I... I'm not even sure when I would wear this," Azalea remarked as she placed the other outfits Bianca let her keep in the bag and closed it.

"You can find the right opportunity to put it on," Bianca said. "I know you can. For now, the concert's coming up soon and we need to get ready."

Azalea looked at her friend as she started to speak about details for the concert she and Fragment Hunter were going to be involved with. "Bianca, I think that you're doing a bit too much. Maybe you should take a break from it all," she suggested.

"I can relax after the concert. After all, the Vytal Festival is soon after it. I'll be watching the fights and enjoying the fairgrounds then," Bianca told Azalea. "I just have to make sure everything goes well until the concert's over."

"Alright. If you say so," Azalea said with a little concern for her friend. "I'm just worried you might exhaust yourself or the stress will get to you."

"Don't worry about it," Bianca stated. "You just worry about yourself for now. Go on and head back to Beacon. You'll need your rest for the concert."

"Okay, then. See you then," Azalea replied and walked off with the bag of clothes in her hand. As she left the building, her thoughts turned back to the gift that was in the bag. "Maybe I should get a few things to go with this," Azalea said to herself.

* * *

 **Okay! Now we're finished with this chapter! It may have seemed like a small breather thing, but the gift Azalea received is going to be super important for later! You'll find out eventually. As for some of the other outfits in the chapter, I'll get to explaining where I got the inspiration for them.**

 **Azalea's crop top outfit was already mentioned before in a much earlier chapter when she and the other girls in Fragment Hunter were out shopping for any outfit they could get her for her date with Slate. Her red top and the butterfly decorated outfit were mostly inspired from the "My Little Pony: Equestria Girls" series where Applejack wore a similar outfit in the "Legend of Everfree" movie and Fluttershy's dancing attire for the "Dance Magic" special. Personally, I see Azalea being a huge fan of the series and the "Friendship is Magic" show, being a major fan of Fluttershy and Applejack because of her childhood. Side note on this same topic, Terracotta would ABSOLUTELY watch the shows with his wife and daughter.**

 **As for Ivy's outfit, that is mostly inspired by the character I picture her having the same voice as, Queen Eclipsa Butterfly from "Star Vs The Forces of Evil". Specifically, Eclipsa's outfit during the Season 3 episode, "Butterfly Trap". I thought that Eclipsa's voice being used for Ivy made sense because of Eclipsa always having this air of class and charm whenever she has a scene in the show, which is how I like to picture Ivy having in her scenes.**

 **As for the cameo by Veronica Moonstone/Rouge, you can't expect a thief to always go for a big heist. Sometimes they just need to relax or earn money some other way. So, Veronica was disguising herself as a model to earn some cash between thief jobs. I bet that you can likely guess her disguise's influence, so kudos if you do. However, this cameo wasn't just to show that off because I wanted to share a little more of Rouge's backstory. What she said to Azalea was absolutely true, just so you know.**

 **And for those of you who have been enjoying Slate and Azalea as a ship, we now have their first real kiss! Things are probably going to be less awkward for them now that they had that moment.**

 **Anyways, next up is the concert with Fragment Hunter and Bianca Coloratura. When that chapter's over, I'm going to try and figure out how to get everything set up so that Chapter 40 is at least the start of the Vytal Festival Tournament because I've been planning a few of these fights for a good while and I** _ **really**_ **want to show off the battle I have planned for Team FCSA. I'm sure that you'll like it when I get to that point!**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	37. Battle of the Bands

**Hello, everybody! WaterDragonMaverick here with the newest chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, our heroes joined Bianca Coloratura for a photo shoot and there were a few things aside from the characters in nice outfits. Veronica Moonstone (aka Rouge) was in the studio with the group, Bianca's concert is approaching fast, Azalea had her first real kiss with Slate, and Bianca gave Azalea a few outfits as a late present for getting into Beacon. With all of that happening, we'll now move onto the next chapter where Fragment Hunter helps Bianca with her concert. However, things can go wrong with major things like these. Let's see if Fragment Hunter can help keep everything under control.**

 **Crank it up to 11!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my own Original Characters.**

* * *

The next few days passed by quickly as Fragment Hunter dealt with their classes and training in time for the Vytal Festival Tournament. However, they also made sure to practice their musical skills as Bianca's concert was tonight. Packing up their instruments, Fragment Hunter prepared to head out to meet up with Bianca and get set up for the show. "This is going to be an amazing night for everyone," Celadon stated as she helped Cereza and Vinyl pack a keyboard.

"I'll say," Silver replied as he put his guitar in a case. "We're going to actually perform in front of a crowd with Bianca alongside us."

"Should I splash you with ice water now or later," Lapis asked with a teasing smirk when her team leader mentioned the Dove Faunus, causing him to blush with embarrassment as he glared at her.

"Okay, okay. Enough messing with Silver and his obvious crush on a pop star," Slate told the others to calm them down.

"NEVER," exclaimed Rua and Vixen as the former put another guitar in a case.

"We need to get going if we want to make sure everything is set up," Azalea said as she grabbed a few pairs of drumsticks.

" _By the way, Azalea. When we were at the studio, I couldn't help but notice your emotional state after Slate went to check up on you,_ " Sunset telepathically said to the Cow Faunus. Realizing what Sunset meant, Azalea began to blush a bright pink and turn away from her friends. " _Me and Pinkie won't tell the others and I'm sure that your dad only told your mom about what we think happened,_ " Sunset stated to Azalea.

The Faunus girl groaned internally as she heard what Sunset told her. "This is _so_ embarrassing," Azalea whispered to herself. "Can we just leave now," she asked her friends as she turned around to see the others had finished packing their instruments. "Thank you. Rua, you know what to do."

"Hold on," Sunset said to everyone as she held out her hand. "I've been practicing my Semblance with Vinyl and I think I figured something out. You wanna demonstrate," she stated before asking Vinyl to help out. Getting a nod in reply from the blue-haired music lover, Sunset held out her hand before both Vinyl and herself briefly flashed a purplish-red color. When that happened, Vinyl disappeared in an instant with the same kind of flash that Rua creates when she uses her Semblance. After a few seconds, Vinyl returned and was now laying on one of the beds. "I can actually bestow Semblances to anyone I want. It's almost like I share the Aura that I connect with," Sunset explained. "But, I'm sure that you'll have the same problems as I did with using more Aura than the original person does."

"That's still a marvelous discovery," Celadon remarked. "It'll save up quite a bit of time for traveling if we need it. And it will be a good way to confuse enemies."

"So cool," Silver stated in awe over the information.

"Well, we shouldn't waste time here," Sunset said. "Let's get going!" Hearing their de facto leader's instructions, Fragment Hunter grabbed all their stuff and teleported out in a flash of light.

* * *

Fragment Hunter soon reached the venue for the concert and immediately saw Terracotta keeping watch over the back entrance. Looking up at the building, the teenagers also saw Ventus keeping an eye out from on top of the roof. "Well, looks like security might be okay for tonight," Cereza remarked as she saw the two Faunus Huntsmen guarding the area against any possible intruders.

"There you all are," Terracotta said as he noticed the group and opened the back door for them. "Bianca's waiting inside."

Stepping inside with their equipment, the members of Fragment Hunter explored the backstage area of the concert hall. As they walked around, they saw stagehands getting everything set for the event and avoided a few as they passed by with items in their hands. Reaching the stage, the teenagers began to setup their equipment when Bianca saw them. "Hey, guys! Do you have everything you need," Bianca greeted and asked as she approached Azalea, Silver, and Rua.

"Yeah, made sure of it," Vinyl replied as she walked up to the Dove Faunus.

"Great! This concert's going to be a success. I can feel it," Bianca said as a stagehand with dirty blond hair and glasses passed by them with a Scroll in his hands. "Oh, I almost forgot. Before you came to help me, Kurenai had the little contest for a fan to hang out backstage for the concert. She should be here any moment."

"What's her name," Rebecca asked.

"I think it was 'Lucy Diamond' or something," Bianca answered as the group heard footsteps and saw a new girl arrive at the stage. She was 5'6" with pale skin, blonde hair that reached her shoulders, and her eyes were light blue. She was wearing a military bodysuit, a black jacket with a white collar and sleeves, and a skirt that was decorated with white swan-like feathers. The back of her jacket also had a swan emblem with diamond-shaped feathers on its wings. "Are you the contest winner," Bianca asked as she stepped toward the girl.

"I am. My name is Lucy Diamond," she greeted the Dove Faunus with a smile and turned to see Fragment Hunter. "Hey, I remember you all from Beacon. Oren and Raduga were talking to you before the dance a few times. Plus, I've seen some of the matches you were in during training."

"Well, it's nice to finally meet you, Lucy," Sunset Blaze said as she waved to the Atlesian girl.

As the group talked and set their equipment, the stagehand with glasses snuck away to a secluded corner in the backstage area. Pressing on the button of the earpiece her wore, he spoke to somebody with it. "Technician to Sticky Fingers. Come in, Sticky Fingers," the young man said.

"I read you, Technic. What's up," a voice said into the earpiece.

"We've got some old friends and I'm sure that a few of them might mess up our plans for tonight," the bespectacled male told the person he weas speaking with.

"Old friends? Hmm, this'll be more fun than I thought. Don't worry, Oliver. We can plan around this. We'll just need a better distraction," the voice replied.

"Alright, Sombra. I just don't things spiraling out of control," Oliver said before he left the corner he stood at and went to the control box for the stage lights.

* * *

After setting up everything and doing their soundcheck, Fragment Hunter waited for Bianca to change clothes for the concert. Lucy Diamond was speaking with them about a number of things involving classes at Beacon before Bianca arrived in her new outfit. The Dove Faunus wore a sparkly baby blue cocktail dress with no back so that her wings were free to move, a pair of silver-colored heels, and she wore a necklace with her angel-winged heart emblem on a pendant. When everyone saw her, Silver could only just stare before Vixen pulled on his tail to snap him out of his trance. Seeing his teammate snickering to herself after returning to his senses, Silver walked up to Bianca to speak with her. "That's a very nice dress you have on," he said.

"Aw, thank you," Bianca replied and kissed Silver on the cheek, which left a pink lipstick mark on his face.

"Well, at least you're not stumbling around like a drunken fool like last time," Rua stated with an amused smile while Silver blushed at Bianca's sudden kiss.

"Shut up," Silver bluntly told his teammate while the other members of Fragment Hunter laughed at what happened.

"We're about ready to start. The crowd's getting pretty big," Azalea said as she looked out at the audience with a hint of nervousness in her voice. "Hey, I see Team RWBY, Team JNPR, and a few others from school out in the stands," she told the others as she looked out and saw a number of familiar faces. Seeing several of her classmates, friends from the other Academies, and even a few teachers from those schools, Azalea's growing stage fright seemed to calm down. As she continued to view the crowd, she noticed somebody familiar that didn't go to any of the four Academies. In a dark corner of the concert hall's auditorium, a young Raccoon Faunus with black and gray hair was walking by people in order to get by them. Seeing his tail, Azalea soon recognized him as the boy who wanted to dance with her back at Beacon. But thanks to Sunset, she learned that the boy was Smoke Shadow, the phantom thief that Fragment Hunter tried to stop once before. Instead of a trenchcoat, the Raccoon Faunus wore a blue hoodie to blend in with the crowd. "What's he doing here," Azalea whispered to herself as she saw the thief politely help some women to their seats before walking through one of the walls with his Semblance when he thought nobody was paying attention to him.

"Who's here," Rebecca asked as she saw Azalea lingering at the curtain.

"Sombra's back," Azalea told Fragment Hunter.

"Who," Lucy Diamond questioned as she was the only one in the group that didn't know of the phantom thief.

"He's a thief that we met before and tried to stop one time," Slate said to the girl. "Why's he here?"

"I doubt it's for anything casual," Sunset remarked. "We need to keep an eye on him. Anybody who's not playing or helping with the show will search for him, got it," the flame-haired girl instructed.

"Right," Fragment Hunter said as Azalea, Rebecca, and Cereza all went to search for Smoke Shadow.

While the three Huntresses-in-training went off, Bianca turned to the rest of the group. "Well, we can let them handle it. For now, we have a show to put on," the Dove Faunus stated as she put a microphone headset on. The members of Fragment Hunter all got into position as the curtain raised to reveal the band to the audience. "Hello, everyone! I'm so glad that you could make it here tonight," Bianca said to the audience. "The band I first hired for this benefit concert couldn't perform tonight because they were hurt in the Breach, but I was lucky enough to run into an old friend who has friends that are in a band of their own. I'd like to introduce tonight's guest band from Beacon Academy, Fragment Hunter!"

* * *

Bianca was doing her introductions for the start of the concert while Azalea, Rebecca, and Cereza searched the backstage area for any signs of Smoke Shadow. "Where would he be," Cereza asked as Rebecca looked around the catwalks.

"I don't know," Azalea said as she looked in the darker areas. "He probably stole everyone's wallets when I saw him earlier and left."

"Maybe not," Rebecca said as she jumped down to the floor and revealed one of Smoke Shadow's calling cards. "This was just left here. Look at what's written down."

Cereza took the card from Rebecca and read it aloud. "Hmm... 'Greetings to the members of Fragment Hunter who have discovered this little clue. I'm sure that you're wondering why I'm here. Am I pickpocketing the audience? Am I after something else? Am I just doing this to see Firebird or that beautiful Azalea again? I'll leave that for you to decide while I accomplish what I need to do. Be on the lookout for anything else that you know is involved with me. Your mysterious phantom thief adversary, Sombra.' Leave it to a phantom thief to do this kind of thing," Cereza remarked after she finished reading the card.

"Girls, I think we need to find out if Tremor or that Rouge girl are here as well," Azalea stated as she thought over what happened the last time they encountered Smoke Shadow.

"Just what I needed," Cereza dryly said as she remembered her battle with Rouge when she and the others went to rescue Azalea. "That shapeshifter could be anyone here."

"We should focus on finding more of these calling cards," Rebecca told Cereza. "Split up and find what we can."

"I'll go check the crowd for anyone suspicious," Azalea voiced as she used her Semblance to turn invisible. "You two keep looking around here for anything," she stated as the girls heard her footsteps walking away from them. Azalea soon made her way to the auditorium and looked around for Smoke Shadow or any of his three allies that she remembered from their old hideout. " _Okay, they would've likely snuck in with Sombra's Semblance if they didn't disguise themselves,_ " Azalea thought to herself as she heard Bianca and Fragment Hunter playing 'This Will Be the Day'.

Soon, she saw Smoke in the audience and he excused himself between several people, pickpocketing them as he passed. Following after him, Azalea stayed invisible until she saw Kun Agate, the muscle of Sombra's group that went by the alias 'Tremor'. Messaging Rebecca and Cereza, Azalea told them about where she last saw Smoke Shadow before she followed after Tremor when he went the opposite direction of the Raccoon Faunus. After hearing Bianca and the others go through a few other songs, Azalea realized that Tremor was going around in circles before he spoke up. "You know, you actually give Smoke a run for his money in stealth," Tremor stated as he turned around to look at Azalea's direction. "But, I've been friends with him since we were kids, so I can tell when somebody's following me."

"That would explain why you kept going in circles," Azalea said as she revealed herself.

"I never did get that rematch yet," Tremor told Azalea as he put on his Drill Bit Knuckle Dusters and got into a boxing stance.

* * *

Cereza and Rebecca read the message Azalea gave them and headed for where the girl last saw Sombra. Soon, they ended up in the catwalks of the backstage area and started looking for any sign of Smoke Shadow. "Find anything yet, Rebecca," Cereza asked as Fragment Hunter played 'Gold' with Bianca.

"I think I did," the member of Team SAFR replied as she noticed a calling card with Smoke Shadow's emblem underneath a coil of rope. "Let's see... 'Looks like you're following me if you made your way here. Just so you know, my way tends to be indirect and challenging at times. Make sure that you can handle it if you can.' Is he sending us on a wild goose chase," Rebecca questioned after reading the note on the card.

"Maybe... But we need to see what he's up to," Cereza remarked. Making their way through the catwalks, they watched the concert below and saw that their friends were doing well. Vixen was even using her illusions to create special effects for the performance that impressed everyone watching. "The concert's going well. But I think that something may happen," Cereza said before the catwalks began to shake a bit. "What was that?"

Cereza's question was soon answered when the doors slammed open and Azalea came crashing through onto the stage with Tremor walking toward her. Everyone was surprised by the sight and Fragment Hunter was about to help their friend when they saw her stand up and pull out her weapon, Gladion. "That all you got since last time," Tremor asked Azalea as he charged up his Semblance and created a vibrating field around his fists. "Then again, your friends had to deal with me for a while before you joined in."

"I can deal with you myself," Azalea said as she glared at Tremor.

Everyone was wondering what was going on and a few of the Huntsmen and Huntresses were about to intervene when they heard somebody speak up. "Oh, now this is one great show! A band of students from Beacon playing with Bianca Coloratura before the Vytal Festival is one thing, but this is something else," the voice said and revealed themselves as Smoke Shadow. "A planned battle as the performance goes on is just perfect for the upcoming event! Does anyone else agree with me," Smoke stated before asking the crowd. The Raccoon Faunus' charismatic nature convinced most of the crowd that Tremor's entrance was part of the show, but a number of warriors in the audience were still cautious.

Fragment Hunter themselves were about to say something when Bianca addressed everyone first. "That's right! Why not have a mock battle to show off what you may be able to see in the Vytal Festival Tournament?! I'm sure that you'd all love to see what the members of Fragment Hunter are capable of since they're all competing in the tournament," Bianca stated. "And don't let her shy looks fool you. Azalea has a fiery spirit that's ready to ignite and burn." Hearing Bianca's words and seeing her gesture to continue playing, Fragment Hunter started to play 'I Burn'.

" _I love this song_ ," Tremor thought to himself as he charged toward Azalea with a shout and threw a haymaker at her. Azalea narrowly dodged the punch and countered by striking at Tremor's arms with Gladion, but the tattooed brawler powered through and threw another punch. Hitting Azalea in the stomach, Tremor knocked her into the air and followed up with another punch that had sent her flying again. Quickly switching the Dust setting on Gladion, Azalea swung her baton behind her and created a gust of wind that sent her flying back toward Tremor. Kicking the criminal in the head, Azalea continued her assault by kicking at his face and chest before jumping off and landing back onto the stage. "Pretty good," Tremor complimented as he shook off the damage.

Azalea and Tremor continued to battle each other as the song continued, trading blow after blow. Azalea soon changed up her weapon's Dust setting to Fire and started to slash at Tremor with a blade of flames, damaging him more. As Tremor blocked or dodged the attacks, his Drill Bit Knuckle Dusters began to spin and he caught Azalea's baton in the drill bits. Disarming his opponent, Tremor punched away at Azalea more before he channeled his Semblance once again. As everyone watched, they saw a large drill-shaped field appear around Tremor's arm. " _Oh, that looks like it'll hurt,_ " Azalea thought to herself. " _But, let's see if he can actually hit me with it,_ " she remarked internally as she remembered the first time she defeated Tremor.

Sensing what Azalea was planning, Sunset relayed the fighter's plan to the others and told them to either shield their eyes or not look at Azalea. As Bianca and Fragment Hunter took precaution, Azalea activated her Semblance and unleashed a burst of light that blinded everyone who wasn't prepared for it. As the audience and Tremor tried to cover their eyes, Azalea rushed toward the boxer and grabbed at his head. Pulling Tremor's face down, she delivered a few knee strikes that dazed him further before performing a suplex and putting him in an armlock just as the song ended. When everyone's vision returned to normal, they saw the outcome of the battle and were amazed at what they could now see. As the crowd applauded, Azalea looked on and nervously smiled at the numerous people staring at her and the band. "That was an excellent fight! Just marvelous," Smoke Shadow said as he walked up to Azalea and Tremor. "If this is the kind of thing we can expect in the Vytal Festival, then we better be on the lookout for this lovely girl," he told the audience. "Well, I don't think this guy is going to be doing any encores for the time being. Let's get him out of here. You've been a wonderful crowd! Goodnight," Sombra declared as he threw down a smoke bomb that covered himself, Tremor, and Azalea. While the Cow Faunus coughed to clear out any smoke she accidentally inhaled, everyone watched as the smoke dissipated to reveal Smoke Shadow and Tremor had vanished along with it.

"That was my line," Bianca called out as she stepped forward to check on Azalea. "But, he was right. You've been a wonderful audience and I'm hoping to enjoy to Vytal Festival with all of you! We're Bianca Coloratura and Fragment Hunter! We'll see you all next time," she said to the crowd. She, Azalea, and the rest of Fragment Hunter all waved to the audience as the curtain closed. Hearing the audience applauding from behind the curtain, Bianca turned back to the others and voiced her concerns about what happened. "What was with that? Wasn't that Tremor?"

"Yeah. And the Raccoon Faunus was Smoke Shadow," Sunset told her.

"We've been trying to find him all throughout the concert," Cereza said as she and Rebecca jumped down from the catwalks. "Just what was he up to?"

"Who knows," Rebecca stated. "Maybe this was all a distraction for something?"

"But for what," Vixen questioned.

* * *

In the basement of the concert hall, Tremor was eating a candy bar that Smoke Shadow gave him while they pulled out a Scroll and spoke to Oliver Electrum. "So, did you and Rouge manage to get what you needed," Sombra asked his friend and teammate.

"Well, that distraction you provided helped out quite a bit," Oliver said on the other line. "She was able to get me the Scroll I needed from one of the visiting Atlas soldiers. Luckily, he was given high enough clearance to protect the scientist we're looking for."

"So, you said that you put something in his Scroll that will jump to the science guy's," Tremor asked for clarification.

"Precisely," Oliver replied. "The app I placed on his Scroll will allow me remote access to the scientist's Scroll, which will allow me to access the files I need for our project. When it's complete, our field work will be so much easier and I'll be able to keep up with you three."

"All this because we found the scrapped remains of one of those Atlesian Paladins by the highway," Smoke said. "I'd say that you need to get a hobby, but this already _is_ one. At least it gives us some cool new gear," he remarked.

"I just need to get some more information on the Paladins themselves. That way, I can modify the remains of the prototype and fix it up to my own plans. It's going to take some time, but it'll be worth it," Oliver told the two.

"Good to know," Tremor said as he finished his snack. "So, should we meet up at the safehouse?"

"Not just yet," Oliver told them. "You two need to lay low for the next while. I'm sure that Fragment Hunter is going to try and find you. Plus, I saw the security that was hired for the concert. Terracotta Gaia was guarding the backstage door."

"Oof, that would've been a rough fight if he was involved," Smoke said as he heard the news. "Good thing I came in from the side with my Semblance."

"I have a drone keeping an eye on him and the other Huntsman on the roof. I'll give you the signal for when you can leave. Until then, just try to stay out of trouble," Oliver instructed the two.

"No problem, Hermit. We'll see you later tonight," Smoke replied as he and Tremor ended their call. "So, video games until the coast is clear?" Tremor pulled out his own Scroll and the two began to pass the time.

* * *

Backstage of the concert hall, Fragment Hunter had just finished packing their instruments and Bianca had changed back into her regular sweater and skirt. "Well, I say that we should head back," Sunset told the others. "It's been a long day and I'd like some rest soon."

"Oh, but there's this afterparty I was going to invite you all to," Bianca said. "It's at the hotel I'm staying at."

"There's an afterparty," Celadon asked excitedly with stars in her eyes.

"Yeah. If any of you want, you can come by tonight," Bianca told the teenagers as Terracotta and Ventus walked up to them.

"I say one more night of fun will be good for all of you before the tournament," Terracotta stated.

Fragment Hunter thought it over and decided that it would be fun to join the after party. "Great! Oh, some of the guests will probably have formal wear, so you may want to change if you're coming," Bianca said.

"Guess a few of us are out," Rua said as she looked at the group. "Unless you want us to wear our outfits from the Beacon Dance."

"That means I'm out," Vinyl replied. "I'll catch some sleep instead."

"Who _is_ going with me, then," Bianca asked. Azalea, Slate, Sunset, Celadon, Silver, Rebecca, and Lapis all raised their hands while the rest chose not to go. "Okay. I'll see you all there in a little bit. Bye." As Bianca left to talk with Lucy Diamond, the members of Fragment Hunter all went back to Beacon Academy with Terracotta and Ventus. With the concert a success, the group had the rest of the night to enjoy before they continued their last days of training and preparation before the Vytal Festival Tournament.

* * *

 **Alright then, Fragment Hunter has finally helped with the concert and after a few more chapters, we'll be moving into the Vytal Festival arc. For now, we just have the appearance of Smoke Shadow and his gang scheming something which used a fight between Azalea and Tremor as a distraction. By the next time they appear, that plan will be revealed.**

 **Next up, we have the afterparty for the concert for some character introductions and interactions. It'll be important because one or two characters will actually help set up something for the first battle of the tournament. You'll find out just what exactly when we get there. As for now, I'll just give you a hint that they were in the audience.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the chapter enough because I would LOVE to get going and reach the Vytal Festival soon because I've been planning out the fights for it. Which is why I introduced the last member of Team GLOW from Atlas, Lucy Diamond. As for what she can do in a fight, you'll have to wait and see.**

 **I also wanted to show another aspect of Sunset's powers at the start because it's going to a be useful, if draining ability in and out of battle.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	38. Stonehaven

**Hello, readers! WaterDragonMaverick with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Fragment Hunter helped out Bianca Coloratura with her concert before the Vytal Festival, but also had to deal with Smoke Shadow and Kun Agate, AKA Sombra and Tremor. Luckily nobody was hurt, but the thieves escaped. Fragment Hunter doesn't know what they were planning, but that's not important at the moment. Right now, the group was invited to an afterparty for the concert at Bianca's hotel. Most of Fragment Hunter is going to head over there while the others get some more rest for their last few days of training. Who will the group meet at that party? Find out now.**

 **You're the life of the party!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only characters I own are of my own creation.**

* * *

After returning to Beacon Academy to put away their instruments and equipment, the members of Fragment Hunter split up to get ready for the afterparty of Bianca's concert. Silver and Slate went to find their tuxedoes while Sunset, Celadon, Lapis, and Rebecca went to go get their dresses from the Beacon Dance. Azalea was about to do the same when her mother approached her. "Azalea, I found something that you might like," Ivy said as she had the younger Faunus come into the spare dorm room she was using. "I was looking through the clothes I brought and I found a dress that would look great on you," Ivy told her daughter as she pulled out a dark green dress.

"Wow... Mom, I didn't know you packed this," Azalea said as she looked at the article of clothing.

"It was one of my favorites when I was younger. I wore this whenever I went to one of Mason's events back when he and Malus first started dating," Ivy reminisced. "I think it'll be a great choice for Bianca's afterparty."

"You know about that," Azalea asked in mild surprise.

"Your father told me about it and I'll be coming with you all," Ivy said as she found the red outfit she wore during the photo shoot earlier in the week. "Why don't you try on the dress? I'm sure you'll look lovely, Sugarcube." Azalea thought it over as her mother got changed and decided that she needed to wear more than just the little black dress she had. Changing out of her regular clothes, Azalea put on the dress and showed it off to her mother. "Hmm... I think we need a few other things. And I'm sure that I have them with me," Ivy told Azalea as she looked at the latter's appearance. "Tell your friends that you'll be another few minutes."

"Got it, Mom," Azalea said as she grabbed her Scroll and typed a message to Fragment Hunter. "Hey, gang. Mom's got a new dress for me to wear, so I'll be out in a few," she muttered to herself as she texted the others in a group chat.

* * *

Sunset, Rebecca, Celadon, Lapis, Silver, and Slate were all changed and waiting with Terracotta and Ventus as they got Azalea's message. "Should we wait for Azalea and Ivy? Or do we head off now," Silver asked.

"I say that we wait for them," Celadon suggested. "A lady can take her time when it comes to how she looks for an event such as the party we're going to."

"Ivy certainly knows that," Ventus remarked as he remembered the times he first met his sister-in-law.

"Like the first time I introduced her to you and you couldn't say a single coherent thing to her," Terracotta teased as he looked at his younger adopted brother.

"HEY! You know I've always had trouble talking to pretty girls," Ventus argued as he got in his brother's face.

"Yet, you still manage to get dates with them. I say it's the hair. The windswept look probably makes you look better to them," Terracotta stated and got a laugh out of the Falcon Faunus. Looking down the hall, Terracotta saw Ivy and Azalea walking toward the group. "You two look lovely," Terra said to his wife and daughter.

Turning to face the newly arrived duo, the teens of Fragment Hunter were amazed at what Azalea was wearing for the party. The younger Cow Faunus wore an emerald-colored halterneck dress with a slit up the left leg and an illusion window that showed off some of her cleavage. She also wore a pair of green heels and some emerald earrings to go with it. The girls were amazed at how Azalea looked while Silver turned to a speechless Slate. "Looks like your girlfriend's pulling that outfit off," the Wolf Faunus stated with a sly grin as he nudged Slate with his elbow. "That sounded less awkward in my head," Silver mentioned as he thought about his phrasing.

Hearing what Silver said, Slate and Azalea both blushed a bright red. "She's/He's not my girlfriend/boyfriend," the two exclaimed in sync as they frantically shook their heads in denial.

"Aww. You two are doing that cute thing where you talk at the same time when you try to clear something up," Lapis said as she and the other girls looked at Slate and Azalea. Embarrassed by how their friends were teasing them, Slate covered his face with his hat while Azalea used her Semblance to turn invisible.

"Don't worry. You get used to it," Terracotta told the blushing teenagers as he remembered when Aurora Celeste and his other teammates teased him about when he and Ivy first met each other. "Should we get going now," the Huntsman asked as he turned to the rest of Fragment Hunter. With the others nodding in agreement, Sunset used her Semblance to copy Rua's Semblance and teleport the group to the hotel.

* * *

When the group of ten arrived at the hotel lobby in a flash of light, Sunset held her head and stumbled around a bit before Celadon and Rebecca steadied her. "Ugh... How does Rua do that with so many of us," Sunset asked as the dizziness and pain in her head faded.

"You _did_ say that any of us using another Semblance with your new power uses up more Aura than we intend to," Lapis reminded as she smoothed down her dress.

"Either way, we're here now. So, we should see if Bianca's waiting for us in the ballroom," Terracotta told everyone. As the group headed toward the hotel ballroom, they saw that a number of people were at the afterparty. Most of them seemed to be there for business as Bianca's manager, Kurenai, was talking to them about possible deals. Entering the ballroom, Terracotta actually seemed to recognize one average-sized businessman in a gray-colored suit with neatly styled blond hair who was having a drink after he finished talking with someone. "Mason Stonehaven. What brings you out to Vale," Terracotta asked as he placed one of his hands on the man's shoulder.

Turning to face the Bull Faunus, the man looked at him with brown eyes and was pleasantly surprised to see who was speaking. "Terra! How've you been, you muscle tower," the blond businessman asked as he looked up at Terracotta.

"Oh, you know. Busy," Terracotta replied before turning to Fragment Hunter. "Ivy, Ven, Azalea! Mason's here," he called out to his family and caught their attention.

Hearing the name, Ventus and the Holstein women walked over to Terracotta and saw the man Terracotta was referring to. "Mason, it's been a while. Is Malus still at the farm," Ivy asked as she spoke to the businessman.

"Yeah. She's taking care of everything there," Mason told the elder Cow Faunus. "Oh, and Luna says 'Hi'. She also wanted to know how Bianca was doing while I was here."

"So, why _are_ you here in Vale," Ivy asked. "Given your usual schedule, it can't be for the Vytal Festival."

"I was in town for a few possible investments when I heard about the concert. After that, Valencia wanted to go and we came to the afterparty because one of my business partners invited us as company," Mason explained. When he did, he saw Azalea in her new dress standing alongside several other teenagers. "And who are these kids? The band that Bianca said she got," he asked with a smile as he looked at Azalea.

"Who exactly is this dapper man anyway and why does your family know him, Lea," Celadon asked.

"This is my uncle, Mason Stonehaven," Azalea introduced to the others. "He's the CEO of 'Stonehaven Construction' and he also invests in other business ventures around Remnant."

"Hold up... 'Stonehaven Construction' is one of the biggest construction companies in Remnant," Lapis noted as she remembered the name of Mason's company. "They've helped repair so many villages outside of the main Kingdoms. How is _he_ your uncle?!"

"You just read my mind," Sunset partially joked.

"Mason met my sister when he took part in one of her art classes," Ivy explained. "After creating a number of paintings that he made under her guidance, his passion for art changed into a... _different_ kind of passion. If you know what I mean." Hearing Ivy describe how he and Malus Holstein met, Mason chuckled in embarrassment at the story and rubbed the back of his head. "Speaking of your love life, where's the result of all your emotions," Ivy questioned as she looked around the room.

"Valencia? Last I saw her, she was talking with Bianca at the refreshment table," Mason replied. Hearing where her cousin was, Azalea went over to see if she was still there with the other members of Fragment Hunter following her. "Azalea sure has changed since I last saw her," Mason remarked as he saw his niece walking away.

"You don't know the half of it," Ventus told him before the four adults began to catch up with each other.

* * *

The members of Fragment Hunter searched the ballroom and eventually found Bianca, who was wearing the same dress she wore when she snuck into the Beacon Dance and met Azalea's friends for the first time. They saw that she was speaking with another blonde girl who was wearing a deep maroon dress that showed off her cleavage and had a slit in the leg. Seeing the teenagers approaching them, Bianca smiled and waved to her friends. "Hey, guys! You made it! Azalea, that dress looks amazing on you," the Dove Faunus said.

"Thanks," Azalea replied with a blush as she rubbed the back of her neck and tried to avoid eye contact.

The second blonde girl looked at the group and kept her eye on Azalea herself. Fragment Hunter noticed the similarities between Azalea and this new girl as they saw they had the same green eyes, figure, and other facial details. She looked like she was 16, stood at 5'6", was wearing red lipstick to go with her dress, and maroon-colored nail polish that matched her outfit for the night. After another silent moment, the blonde crossed her arms before speaking to the Cow Faunus. "Who are you and what have you done to my cousin? She does _not_ dress this way on purpose. I should now. I've always tried getting her to change her wardrobe around," the girl said.

"Glad to see you haven't changed at all, Valencia," Azalea answered as she gave the blonde a hug.

"Okay, who is this and what's going on," Sunset asked as she and the others were becoming confused.

"Everyone, this is my cousin, Valenica Stonehaven," Azalea introduced to her friends. "Valencia, these are some of my friends that I've written home about."

"So, these people are your teammates," Valencia questioned as she looked over the girls, Silver, and Slate.

"Well, yes and no," Celadon replied for her friend. "The rest of us are back at Beacon after the concert, but we wanted to come to the afterparty."

"Let me tell you who's who," Azalea told her cousin. "Celadon, Rebecca, and Sunset are all part of Team SAFR. Silver and Lapis are half of Team SLVR. And the only member of my team that came with us is Slate."

"Your boyfriend," Valencia asked with a teasing smile and look in her eye.

"NO, HE'S/I'M NOT," Azalea and Slate both exclaimed in embarrassment, much to the enjoyment of Valenica, Bianca, and the rest of Fragment Hunter. "Not again," they groaned as they hid their faces.

"Hahahaha! Well, if that's the case, you mind if I have some fun with him," Valencia asked as she slinked close to Slate. "He's a cutie. And the scar on his cheek doesn't take anything away," she added as she rubbed a thumb against Slate's scarred cheek.

"Don't you already have a boyfriend," Bianca questioned in return. "Or did you treat him like the couple dozen you've had over the past few months?"

"I'm just teasing," Valencia said as answered Bianca. "I'm very happy with my big cuddly teddy bear of a boyfriend. I'm just happy that my favorite cousin has a boyfriend of her own."

"I'm your _only_ cousin," Azalea stated. "And Slate's not my boyfriend. We only went out on a few dates."

"You two also took each other to the Beacon Dance and kissed when we were at the photo shoot," Sunset retorted with a teasing smirk. "Sorry for speaking up about that second bit."

Hearing about her cousin's love life, Valencia began to pester Azalea about a number of different things before the others interrupted her. "So, how long are you in Vale," Lapis asked.

"Oh, just for a while. Daddy's in town for a few business deals, but we'll be heading back home to Mirabelle after the first round of the Vytal Festival," Valencia explained. "I'll at least be able to hang out with Azalea and watch you guys in a battle together."

"That sounds good," Rebecca voiced.

"So, are you one of those typical rich girls who gets by with 'Daddy's' money? Or do you actually do something outside of home," Silver inquired.

"Valencia works at my mom's boutique," Bianca answered for Valencia with a yawn. "She took my old job there when I left for my singing work."

"I already love fashion, so why not work with it? Plus, it feels nice to earn my money rather than constantly ask Daddy," Valencia added.

"That, and Aunt Malus wanted you to learn the value of hard work," Azalea remarked.

"Since when did you start getting all sassy," Valencia chuckled as she looked at her cousin. As the party continued, the teenagers talked about a number of things.

* * *

After talking with Valencia and Bianca for a while, the members of Fragment Hunter separated to enjoy the rest of the party or to sneak away to other parts of the hotel. Bianca was looking pretty tired throughout the party and Silver offered to take her up to her room. As they walked out of the ballroom, Bianca started to lean against Silver for support as she was becoming drowsier. Azalea smiled as she saw the two head out the door. "They look so cute together," Azalea commented to Sunset as the two stood by the punch bowl.

"Yeah, they do," Sunset agreed before she looked at Azalea with a mischievous look in her eye. "So do you and Slate. You two would probably have adorable green-eyed children."

Azalea blushed for what felt like the 12th time today as she hid her face with her hands. "Please stop," she moaned in embarrassment. "Why are you doing this to me?"

"Honestly? Because it's kind of fun," Sunset answered with a laugh before leaving Azalea alone by the punch bowl.

Sighing in defeat, Azalea poured herself a drink and downed it quickly before she noticed her father and Uncle Mason talking to somebody she saw around Beacon Academy recently. Azalea watched as the man approached the punch bowl to get himself a non-alcoholic drink before he noticed her. "Excuse me, but aren't you Terracotta Gaia's daughter," the man asked. Looking at him, Azalea recognized the man as General James Ironwood, the headmaster of Atlas Academy.

"Y-yes. I am, sir," Azalea replied as she tried to correct her posture.

"You can calm down, Miss Holstein," Ironwood told the girl. "Your father and I have known each other for years. There's no need to be so formal with me." Azalea was surprised at how General Ironwood was speaking to her compared to how she expected. "You and I both know that battle earlier tonight wasn't exactly a staged promotional event," James said as he referred to Azalea's battle with Tremor. "You did a very brave thing by confronting that man. You showed what it means to be a Huntress when you faced off against a threat you recognized and did your best to stop it."

"Thanks. I've actually fought Tremor before, so I knew what to expect from him," Azalea stated. "That big drill thing was new, though."

"Your actions reminded me a lot of when I first met Terra," Ironwood remarked. "He saw an attack before it was about to happen and was able to deal with it before anyone else could realize what was going on."

Azalea smiled as she held a conversation with the General about her family. As their talk went on, Azalea thought of something as she saw her Uncle Ventus show up and join the talk. While the two spoke with each other about one time the Vytal Festival was held at Atlas and the Falcon Faunus helped out on a mission with the Atlesian Air Force. "Mr. Ironwood? I was wondering if you could help me figure something out," the Cow Faunus asked.

"And what would that be," the General questioned as he let Azalea continue.

"I want your advice about some new armor I'm thinking of," the young Huntress explained as she looked at her uncle's greaves, which caught the Huntsmen's attention.

* * *

The night went on and the guests soon began to leave after spending enough of their time in the ballroom. As Terracotta, Ivy, Ventus, and the members of Fragment Hunter began to head out, they saw Mason and Valencia waiting for them at the front door of the hotel. "Good thing we caught you guys before you left," Mason told the group. "We have something to give Azalea."

"Think of it as a present for getting this far through Beacon," Valencia said as she gave her cousin a music box of sorts. "I think you'll like this a lot. We got it custom-made."

"Wow, this looks amazing already," Ventus said as he looked at the details on the closed box. "Was it pretty expensive?"

"I'm sure it was," Ivy remarked as she inspected the music box. "But then again, the two of you don't really need to worry about money," she added as she looked at her brother-in-law and niece.

Azalea held the music box in her hands as her friends looked at the ornate design of the item's surface. "Val, you shouldn't have," she said in disbelief as she looked at her cousin and the box.

"Just go ahead and open it when you're upset about something. I promise that you'll love it," Valencia told Azalea. "I'll see you at the Festival. Later, cuz," the blonde said as she waved to the group and headed for the elevator with her father.

As Fragment Hunter bid Mason and Valencia farewell, Azalea only kept looking at the object she held in her hands. Putting her thoughts on the music box aside, she and the others were about to teleport back to Beacon Academy when they noticed somebody was missing. "Hey, where's Silver," Lapis asked. "Shouldn't he have been back by now?"

"Let me check up on him," Sunset told the others before using her Semblance's telepathy. " _Hey, Silver. You there, man?_ " Sunset didn't get a reply from the Wolf Faunus, but she did feel a few different things as she figured out where he was. Piecing everything together, Sunset's face blushed a bright red that nearly blended in with her hair. "I think he's okay. We should head back now because I could really use a shower," Sunset stated.

Ivy only chuckled as she immediately realized what Sunset discovered. "Well, sounds like somebody's having more fun tonight than others," she remarked. "Reminds me of a few of our little 'rendezvous' back when we first started dating," she whispered to Terracotta, who only grinned in reply.

"Let's just hope he treats Bianca right," Celadon voiced.

"We'll find out about that later because he might tell us the tame version of it," Slate mentioned.

"Okay, I'm going to get us out of her," Sunset told everyone and teleported everyone back to Beacon Academy. When they returned to the dorm rooms, the teenagers got changed into their sleepwear for the night and Azalea placed her new music box onto her dresser. After the eventful day they had, the members of Fragment Hunter needed to get rest for the Vytal Festival as it was approaching quickly.

* * *

 **And with this chapter, we have Azalea in a new dress, we meet the Stonehaven's, Ironwood gets a small appearance, Azalea's cousin gives her a music box (that will be opened next chapter), and just a little offscreen thing with Silver and Bianca. Honestly, I need to focus on him a little more. But luckily, we are nearing the major turning point of Azalea's character arc and I can focus on the rest of the characters in Fragment Hunter.**

 **Now then, Valencia's dress is actually the same one as Lucy Heartfilia's from the first episode of Fairy Tail. So, you can check that out for a visual reference. I also am basing Valencia's character on several different characters, so she's going to have some scenes outside of what I showed in this chapter. Especially since I have this main trait of hers that hasn't been shown off yet. Keep an eye out for it.**

 **Ironwood's moment with Azalea was because I like the character and I thought that he would help Azalea with what she's planning with her armor idea with Ventus. I picture that outside of Ozpin's Inner Circle with Glynda and Qrow, Ironwood is also pretty friendly with other Huntsmen and Huntresses that try to do the right thing and protect people. So, I assume that anybody who showed moments similar to Ruby back during the Beacon Dance would catch his attention.**

 **As for the next chapter, we'll be focusing on a few characters that Sunset will be using her Semblance on in order to find out about their pasts. Not only that, but we'll have a moment or two where things get set up for the Vytal Festival Tournament.**

 **Make sure to review if you liked this chapter and give me some helpful/kind feedback. It'll help out with making more chapters for this and my other stories.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	39. Green With Envy

**WaterDragonMaverick here with the newest chapter of my RWBY Original Character fic, "Sideline: Another Story". In this chapter, we'll be seeing more backstories for characters as Sunset continues to use her Semblance. We'll get some insight into these characters and why they do what they do. Not only that, but we'll also see some setup for the Vytal Festival Tournament which will begin in the next chapter. So right now, I think that it's time that we got into the chapter.**

 **Get ready!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my own characters made for this story**

* * *

Vale and Beacon Academy were getting everything prepared for the Vytal Festival, which was only a few more days away. The fairgrounds were being set up, students were getting some last-minute training in, and officials were making sure that everything was in order. Fragment Hunter was in the dining hall of Beacon having breakfast with Team RWBY and Team JNPR. "Only a few more days until the tournament," Silver said with a big smile on his face. "This is going to be so awesome!"

"Somebody must be happy after their 'quality time' with a certain girl," Cereza remarked as she referred to the afterparty for Bianca Coloratura's concert and how Silver was the last member of Fragment Hunter to return to the dorms.

"Wait, he did what," Weiss asked in confusion.

"You know how we told you guys that Bianca had a thing for Silver," Slate told the other two teams. When they nodded in reply, Slate continued his explanation. "Yeah, turns out that Silver spent the night with Bianca after the concert and party."

"Way to go," Yang congratulated the Wolf Faunus with a light punch at his shoulder.

"Lucky sonuva," Vinyl said with a smile and a hint of jealousy.

"Anyway, is everyone here psyched for the tournament," Rua asked as she changed the topic.

"I'd say that we are," Blake replied.

"Same here," Jaune added as he spoke up for Team JNPR.

As the group of twenty discussed the tournament and any possible opponents they would face off against, their attention was soon drawn to a nearby table where some people were laughing. Looking in the direction of the cruel laughter, everyone saw Team JADE from Mistral's Haven Academy surrounding a few students. Jet, Aoi, and Envy were laughing at the students they were picking on while Duke only rolled his eyes and took the students to the infirmary. "Those three are _so_ much worse than Cardin was earlier in the year," Pyrrha remarked as she glared at Team JADE in disgust.

"Oh, we know," Slate said as he placed his thumb against his scarred cheek, remembering his battle with Jet, Aoi, and Envy. Glaring at the three with hateful eyes, he soon turned his attention to Azalea. She was hugging her legs and trying to look away from her old bullies just before she felt something hit the back of her head. Everyone at the table saw that Aoi threw a bowl of oatmeal at Azalea, which got all over her uniform and hair. "As much as I want us to retaliate, we don't want to get on Goodwitch's bad side before the tournament," Slate voiced as he looked at the other members of Fragment Hunter.

"Come on, Lea. Let's get you cleaned up," Layla told her friend/teammate.

As most of the table left to help Azalea or get more training in, the only ones still there were Sunset, Ren, and Nora. "Nora, I know what you're thinking, but don't. We should avoid getting into trouble," Ren stated to his childhood friend.

"Hey, how exactly did you guys meet," Sunset questioned as she looked at the two.

"Well... It's a loooong story," Nora said as she rubbed the back of her head and looked at Ren.

"You don't have to _tell_ me, you know," Sunset reminded as she focused on using her Semblance to search Ren's mind and memories despite Ren's quick warnings. When she did, she saw a village in Anima called 'Kuroyuri' where Ren lived with his mother and father. Soon, Sunset saw a younger Ren first encounter a homeless Nora when she was being picked on by some local children and treated her like a stray animal. " _Man, I can't believe that Nora was like that_ ," Sunset thought to herself as she continued watching. While Ren was too afraid to do anything about them, his father showed up and Nora ran away when the bullies were distracted. After searching through Ren's mind some more, Sunset soon saw that Ren's hometown was under attack by Grimm and one of them was much more horrifying than the others. " _Wh-what is that thing,"_ Sunset said to herself as she saw the Grimm in Ren's memories.

As the attack progressed, she saw Nora and Ren cowering during the Grimm attack and that Ren was having a panic attack from everything that happened. Sunset watched as Ren's Semblance was unlocked during the extreme stress of everything happening to Kuroyuri, which allowed him to calm down and mask his emotions to avoid being detected by any of the Grimm. As he reached Nora, Ren hid the both of them from the Grimm and watched them leave the building the two children were hiding underneath. Sunset only looked on at Ren's memory as he reached for a wooden hammer and handed it to Nora to help her feel better. With that emotional moment between the two, Sunset exited Ren's mind and panted heavily as she collected herself. "I told you that you might not like what you saw," Ren stated. "Still, are you okay with what you saw?"

"Yeah," Sunset replied. "It's just... That's a lot to take in. Good thing that you two had each other after all of that," she said to Ren and Nora. _"I can see why you fell for him in the first place,"_ Sunset telepathically remarked to Nora, which made the energetic girl of Team JNPR giggle in embarrassment and dismiss Sunset's claim. "But, what exactly is their deal with why they pick on Azalea," Sunset muttered to herself as she glared at Jet, Aoi, and Envy.

* * *

After cleaning herself up and changing her clothes, Azalea was moping in her team's dorm. Wearing one of her larger sweaters, she curled up into the fetal position and hid away in the article of clothing. While she did so, her family's dogs whimpered as they placed their paws on her in an attempt to get her to react. "Azalea's not here, guys. She's in Sweater Town," the Faunus girl told her pets. Drei was the first to try and get Azalea to show her face by leaning against her. When she looked at the corgi, he began to roll around on his back and request a tummy rub from Azalea. The Faunus only laughed at her dog's antics and scratched at Drei's belly. "Thanks. You guys always helped me out back home," Azalea told the three canines.

Azalea sighed as she stopped scratching Drei's belly and started petting Dante's head. "I'm tired of those three always picking on me more than anybody else," she stated as she referred to Jet Pitch, Aoi Lobelia, and Envy Sinn. "Those jerks are just pathetic bullies that go after me because they see me as a scared girl," Azalea continued to rant as her eyes began to turn red and Dante began to growl at the mention of Team JADE. "Jet, Aoi, and Envy can all go to Hell with everything I've been put through," she exclaimed until Diana licked her face to calm her down. "Hahaha! Stop it, Diana," Azalea laughed as her eyes changed back to their usual green color and she tried to push away the dog. Azalea's attempt to stop her dog proved fruitless as Dante and Drei joined in and licked at Azalea until she bumped into her dresser. Hitting the piece of furniture, Azalea felt something fall onto her lap and saw that it was the music box that Valencia gave her. The three dogs looked at the box in curiosity as Azalea stood up and sat back down on her bed. Remembering what Valencia suggested, Azalea thought about opening the music box.

* * *

Sunset was still thinking about Team JADE and why the three bullies exclusively chose Azalea as their favorite victim. With her pet gecko on her head, Sunset sat and mediated in order to try and clear her mind. At first, meditation wasn't something Sunset would've done on her own. However, she decided to take it up on the suggestion of Terracotta Gaia, Nocturne Celeste, and Yatsuhashi Daichi as a way of helping to hone her Aura and Semblance. After another minute of meditating, Sunset exhaled and decided what she was going to do. Focusing her Semblance to search for Team JADE as she walked through the courtyard, she eventually found the team from Mistral. "Gotcha," Sunset muttered to herself as Phoenix made a little chirping noise.

Jet, Aoi, and Envy were sitting around a walkway with the black-haired male chewing away at some gum while Aoi looked at her reflection in a compact. Envy was leaning against a wall when she noticed Sunset approaching them. "Well, if it isn't Milk Truck's friend," Envy said as Sunset stood in front of the three bullies. "What do you want?"

"I'm just here for some answers," Sunset stated as the three students from Mistral surrounded her. "Like why you three keep picking on Azalea," she exclaimed as she grabbed Jet's wrist. Activating her Semblance, she dived into Jet's memories to find anything relevant to her question. Entering Jet's mind, Sunset saw a slightly younger Jet standing over the dead bodies of his parents as members of the White Fang attacked a number of shops that banned Faunus. Sunset watched as Jet fell to his knees and clenched his fists hard enough that his nails made his hand bleed. "Well, it seems that you aren't over the fact that your family died to the White Fang," Sunset remarked as she released Jet from her grip.

"What," Jet shouted in surprise at how Sunset knew about his family.

"Now, how about you," Sunset asked as she grabbed onto Aoi's shoulder and searched through the girl's head. Entering Aoi Lobelia's mind, Sunset saw scenes of the girl's family belittle and hate Faunus whenever they encountered them. Watching all the negative opinions of the Faunus from other people, Sunset saw that Aoi began to think in the same callous way. "Well, you're just one of those types of people who grew up with racist opinions and hate everywhere. Your parents are just disgusting human beings and so are you," Sunset said as she glared at Aoi.

Aoi was shocked at what Sunset was saying, but didn't do anything about it as Envy reacted first. "Alright, how is it that you know these things," Envy shouted as she lunged at Sunset to try and use her Aura Drain Semblance. Sunset acted quickly and dodged the girl before placing Envy into an armlock so she could safely enter the final bully's memories. Looking in Envy's mind, Sunset saw Envy when she first encountered Azalea at Sanctuary Academy. As the memories progressed, Sunset watched as Envy looked at Azalea doing well in classes and embracing her parents when they came to pick her up. The bully only scowled as she muttered to herself and Sunset listened to Envy's thoughts. " _Why does that horned freak get to have the good life? She has a family, that body, and a real home. While I'm completely on my own because nobody cares about me! That Dairy Cow has everything that I don't,"_ Envy's thoughts echoed before Sunset exited the girl's mind.

"Well, I guess that explains why you're called 'Envy'. You're jealous of Azalea," Sunset stated as she and Phoenix glared at Envy. "All three of you are just pathetic. Azalea's done nothing to any of you and you pick on her just to make yourselves feel good."

"Why is it that you think you know us," Jet angrily questioned as he tried to punch Sunset, but Phoenix jumped onto his face to distract the boy while Sunset moved to the side.

"I'm not going to tell you," Sunset replied with a glare as Phoenix jumped off of Jet's back and landed on his owner's shoulder. "Just know that if you go up against me or any of my friends in the tournament, you're going to be in a world of hurt."

"Oh, I'll show you 'hurt', bitch," Aoi snarled as her eyes turned red and she was about to use her Laser Vision Semblance.

"Hey, what's going on over here," a female's voice asked.

Turning to see who it was, Sunset recognized the girl as Emerald Sustrai from Haven Academy. With the new arrival, Team JADE left to return to their dorm while Sunset stayed behind. "Hey, thanks for that," Sunset said to Emerald.

"No problem. Why were they about to attack you, though," Emerald replied before asking another question about the scene she stumbled upon.

"Those three are just bullies who have been picking on my friend since before any of them went to Beacon or Haven. I'm sure that Azalea could handle herself against them in the tournament," Sunset explained.

"Well, it's a good thing I showed up when I did. Otherwise, none of you would've been in the tournament," Emerald said.

"Yeah. Well, I'll see you around," Sunset told the girl as she walked away. " _She seems nice. But... something doesn't feel right with her,_ " Sunset thought to herself.

Emerald waved to Sunset as the two parted ways, but she soon stopped when the second girl was out of sight. "Getting friendly with the other students, are we," a male's voice said from behind a pillar.

"Shut up, Mercury," Emerald told the male as he walked into her view. "I think Cinder will want to hear something," she added as the two went off to their dorm.

* * *

Azalea held the music box in her hands as she sat on her bed, thinking about what could be inside and what song would play. Before she could decide what to do, the door opened up and Slate walked inside. "Hey, Azalea. Have you seen Pinkie around? I've been looking all over for her," Slate asked his partner.

"Not lately," Azalea replied as Slate closed the door behind himself. The gunslinger of Team FCSA saw the music box in Azalea's hands and the hesitant look on her face. Sitting down next to her, Slate placed his hat on her head and smiled to silently reassure Azalea. Azalea shyly smiled back before she finally decided to open the music box. When she did, she and Slate saw a figurine in the box that resembled a large and powerful warrior. The figure had a bodysuit, an armored vest, and a mohawk, all of which gave it more of an intimidating look. However, the figure was sitting peacefully with birds surrounding him and resting on his open arms. The music box played a beautiful and emotional song that sounded like it focused on the feelings of a reluctant warrior about to go into battle against a deadly foe. Slate, Azalea, and the dogs all listened to the tune while the former two looked at the figurine.

"Man, your cousin gave you a really nice music box," Slate said as the song ended. "You know, that figurine kind of reminds me of your dad." Looking out of the window, Azalea saw that Terracotta was meditating outside and birds began to fly down close to him, landing on his horns and shoulders. Watching the sight in front of her, Azalea looked back at the music box and snickered at the comparison Slate made. Slate watched with a smile as he saw Azalea's mood improve and took his hat off of her head. _"There's that smile I love to see",_ Slate thought to himself as he and Azalea looked at each other before kissing.

Azalea enjoyed the kiss with Slate until Dante barked to snap the two out of their trance. Quickly separating at the noise, they soon heard a knock on the door. Opening it up, they saw Ventus Gaia on the other side. "Azalea, everything's nearly done with what you wanted. You wanna come and check it out," the Falcon Faunus said to his niece.

"I'll be there in a minute, Uncle Ven," Azalea told the Huntsman. As he headed down the hallway, Azalea turned to Slate and spoke with him. "I wanted his help with some things to prepare for the tournament," she explained as she closed the music box. "I'll be back later. Can you take Dante and the others out for a walk? They might help you find Pinkie."

"Sure thing, Azalea," Slate agreed and was thanked with a kiss on his cheek before Azalea headed off to follow her uncle.

Catching up with Ventus, Azalea heard her uncle ask her something. "You just wanted to explain something to your boyfriend?" Before she could deny that Slate was her boyfriend, Azalea thought to herself about how Slate was always there for her and that she enjoyed it when they were together. "Come on, let's go meet up with Jimmy," Ventus told Azalea as they went to go see General James Ironwood.

* * *

In the dorms that the transfer students from Mistral were staying at, Emerald and Mercury were speaking to their 'leader', Cinder. "So, these three students all have hostility toward this one girl," Cinder asked as she finished hearing Emerald tell her about Team JADE's encounter with Sunset Blaze.

"Yes. Apparently, most of Team JADE has been harassing Azalea Calla Holstein since they went to combat school," Emerald told Cinder.

"Isn't Azalea that Faunus with the nice rack," Mercury asked out loud. "The one with the enormous Huntsman for her dad?"

"Ah yes. Terracotta Gaia could be a problem, but he doesn't know a thing about our plan," Cinder stated. "He has also just been focusing on his daughter and her friends."

"Still, I feel sorry for the poor sap who tries to get a date with that Dairy Cow," Mercury joked as he laid down on the floor.

"Think we can use that Team JADE to our advantage," Emerald asked Cinder.

"Perhaps," the black-haired woman said with a devious smirk on her face. "For now, we should get ready for the tournament. All of Remnant is going to be watching."

* * *

After getting her new equipment from Ventus and Ironwood, as well as talking with Penny for a little since she was with the General, Azalea returned to her dorm room to see that she was alone. Reaching underneath her bed, she pulled out the bag that Bianca had given her after the photo shoot and looked inside. Thinking about everything that has happened since she came to Beacon Academy, Azalea turned to look out the window and saw a butterfly pass by. Looking at the insect and her reflection in the glass, Azalea had a determined look in her eyes as she pulled her baton out of her pocket. "Things are going to be different now," Azalea said to herself as she looked at Gladion.

Hearing her Scroll ring, Azalea answered the device to see that the rest of Team FCSA was calling her. "Hey, Lea! Slate said that you and your uncle were doing something. Are you finished yet," Layla asked as she was to first to speak between the four.

"Yeah. I just got back to the dorm after some training with him," Azalea replied as she opened the window a bit for some fresh air. "Where are you guys?"

"We're checking out the fairgrounds. Things are coming along quite nicely," Cereza said. "Slate's here with your dogs and his sister. You want to come join us?"

Azalea looked at the bag on her bed and thought to herself before answering her team leader. "I'm good. I'm going to make sure I have everything ready for the Vytal Festival."

"Okay, then. We'll see you later," Cereza replied and ended the call. With the call ended, Azalea started to remove her sweater and began to try on her new outfit from Bianca after turning on her music box. As she did, a butterfly flew through the open window and landed on the music box as the song played once more.

* * *

 **With this chapter finished, we're all set up for going into Volume 3 of RWBY canon. It's almost time for the Vytal Festival Tournament! What will be in store for our heroes when it's time for battle? Stick around to find out how they handle everything Volume 3 gave us.**

 **First up, I wanted to show off the motivations for Team JADE's antagonistic members for a while. So, having Sunset using her Semblance to learn of why they're such jerks made sense.**

 **I also wanted to add that scene with her reading Ren's mind and memories about Kuroyuri for two things. One, Fragment Hunter won't be going on the same journey as Team RNJR in Volume 4 and I wanted them (or at least Sunset) to know about Ren's past. Two, it's a symbolic thing because of what's to come for Beacon.**

 **As for Emerald showing up to stop a fight between Sunset and Team JADE, I wanted to give a good reason for one of the matches that Cinder will rig as she did with several of the other battles in the tournament. Having Emerald and/or Mercury learn of Team JADE's antagonistic behavior toward Azalea made sense for what I have in store for the battles I'm going with.**

 **Now we move onto the music box from Valencia Stonehaven. Now, the figurine in the box may seem familiar to some anime/manga fans. That's because the figure is supposed to be based on Android 16 from Dragon Ball Z. And the music used for the box is supposed to be from Dragon Ball Z as well. The song is a music box version of "Unmei no Hi – Tamashii VS Tamashii", better known as "Day of Fate – Spirit VS Spirit", thanks to Dragon Ball Z Abridged by TeamFourStar. A music box version of the actual song was used during the end of their 60** **th** **episode of DBZA and I thought that it was beautiful, so I wanted to use it for an actual music box in this story.**

 **The next chapter will focus on the beginning of the Vytal Festival before going into any of the real matches. After Chapter 40, we'll start the actual tournament. If you're all wondering what Azalea's new outfit is going to be, you'll need to wait for it. Until then, make sure to leave a review of what you thought about the chapter. Leave some nice words or some helpful advice.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	40. The Vytal Festival Opening Ceremony

**Hello, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here with the 40** **th** **chapter of "Sideline: Another Story" and the start of my fic's take on RWBY Volume 3! Last chapter had us see why Team JADE's antagonistic members are such jerks, we saw what was in the music box Valencia gave Azalea, and Azalea is getting ready for the tournament. Right now, we'll be going with the start of the Vytal Festival because we began the Volume with Team RWBY in the middle of a fight. I think it would be good to see how the Tournament would begin, so get ready for more action-packed chapters starting with this one!**

 **Let the games begin!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters featured in this story.**

* * *

After waiting for so long, the day had finally arrived for Vale and Beacon Academy. The day of the 40th Vytal Festival was today and everyone was excited. However, the members of Fragment Hunter had to deal with somebody who was even more excited than them. "Ohmygosh! Ohmygosh! Ohmygosh! It's finally here! The Vytal Festival is here," Pinkamena Momo Quartz exclaimed as she zipped around the hallways. "I'm going to see my brother and his friends do all kinds of amazing stuff!"

"How much sugar did you have today, Taffy Chew," Slate asked his little sister as he watched the pink-haired girl zoom around like a squirrel.

"Just a hot chocolate with whipped cream that Mrs. Ivy gave me," Pinkie replied as she skipped over to her brother's side.

"Was that before or after your usual bowl of Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes? You know, the one that's the size of your head," Slate remarked as he tussled his sister's hair, which briefly made it look frizzy and curly before Pinkie shook her head to fix it.

"Speaking of that cereal, I bet that Pyrrha's going to do well in the tournament," Lapis mentioned.

"No doubt," Vinyl agreed as she pointed at Lapis with a finger.

"Well, I think we should go and check out the fairgrounds since the actual tournament won't begin for another while," Sunset stated.

As everyone agreed to the plan, Azalea checked her Scroll to see that she got a message from her cousin, Valenica Stonehaven. "Hey, Valencia's going to be waiting for us at the fairgrounds anyway. Let's go meet up with her there," Azalea told the others. "I can introduce her to the rest of you guys as well."

"Alright then," Rua said as she and the others headed off for the Vytal Festival's fairgrounds.

* * *

Reaching the fairgrounds outside of Beacon's campus, Pinkie and the members of Fragment Hunter were looking around the area and saw a number of different people. Students from the different schools, locals from Vale, visitors from other parts of Remnant, and even a few soldiers and androids from Atlas were walking around. Vendors and stalls were set up all over the place, giving people options for shopping and food. "Wow! Look at everything," Pinkie exclaimed as she looked at a few stalls serving noodles or selling clothes.

"It's pretty much like when it was at Vacuo," Slate commented. "Just with more plants."

"Well, where's this cousin of yours," Vixen asked Azalea as the Fox Faunus pulled out one of her fans and started to wave it out of boredom. "You said she would be here."

"If I know Valencia, she's probably checking out some clothing vendors to see if she can add something to her wardrobe," Azalea replied as she looked around. "I think I see her," she said as she saw Valencia at a booth selling clothes from Mistral.

Valencia Stonehaven looked different to the members of Fragment Hunter that met her before because she was no longer wearing the maroon dress. Instead, Valencia was wearing a purple criss-cross halterneck crop top with flowers decorating the chest and a matching purple skirt with a flowing light purple mesh around it. She also wore a belt, detached sleeves, and strap heels, all in the same mint green color. Turning to her right and facing Fragment Hunter, Valencia revealed that she was wearing purple flowers in the left side of her chest-length blonde hair. "Azalea! It's great to see you! Are these the rest of your friends," Valencia asked as she noticed the 13 teenagers.

"Yeah, they are," Azalea said as she introduced Pinkie and the remaining members of Fragment Hunter to her cousin. "So, how's everything going?"

"Just waiting for Daddy to finish up one of his business calls so that we spend time together before the tournament," Valencia said as she flipped her hair. "What about you? Did you open the music box yet?" Azalea nodded before she turned to look at Slate, who smiled back with a small blush on his face. Valencia smirked as she saw how they looked at each other before whispering into Azalea's ear. "Are you sure he's not your boyfriend?"

"Val," Azalea exclaimed in embarrassment, making most of Fragment Hunter laugh along with Valencia.

"As fun as this is, why don't we check out everything," Cereza suggested as she adjusted her glasses.

"Sounds good," Layla agreed.

Soon, the teenagers all wandered around the fairgrounds and saw all kinds of goods for sale. As the time passed, they passed by a few stalls where Fragment Hunter saw a handful of their classmates enjoying themselves or spending time with transfer students. Reaching a stand that was selling snacks, the group was about to get some popcorn when they heard the intercom system sound off. "Attention, everyone," Professor Port said as his voice crackled over the intercom. "The Vytal Festival's opening ceremony is about to begin."

"Those who wish to get a good seat for the sparring match between previous winners of tournaments, you may want to hurry and reach Amity Colosseum right away," Doctor Oobleck added.

"Huh. You would think with this being a major thing, the local news stations would've wanted to have somebody be the commentators," Lapis remarked.

"That would mean that they have few reporters for talking to people on the street," said a familiar voice. Fragment Hunter, Pinkie, and Valencia all turned to see Bianca Coloratura approaching them with a bucket of popcorn in her hands. "Having somebody associated with the Huntsman Academies makes sense for an announcer."

"True," Sunset Blaze agreed. "Come on. Let's go see what's going to happen."

* * *

Reaching the enormous flying arena known as Amity Colosseum, Fragment Hunter and their friends headed off to find their seats. Looking at the incredibly large seating area, Azalea began to feel a little nervous about fighting in front of such a large crowd before Slate placed his hand on her shoulder. Heading down toward the red seats closest to the arena itself, Fragment Hunter sat down with Valencia, Pinkie, and Bianca. "Good thing these seats are reserved for contestants and VIPs," Valencia mentioned as she pulled out a compact mirror and checked her reflection. "I don't think any of us would've liked sitting higher up in the stands."

As everyone in the stands talked about what might happen, Professor Port and Doctor Oobleck were sitting in the commentator's booth high above everyone else. "Greetings, everyone! Welcome to the Vytal Festival Tournament," Port exclaimed in his usual boisterous tone. "I'm Professor Peter Port of Beacon Academy!"

"And I'm Doctor Bartholomew Oobleck of Beacon," Oobleck added.

"We will be your announcers. Bringing commentary to each and every battle. As well as providing information on all the different aspiring warriors taking part in the fights," Port stated.

"As always, the Vytal Festival is a historic event that has been part of Remnant's culture since the end of the Great War. And with 80 years gone by, today marks the 40th Vytal Festival Tournament," Oobleck explained. "With such a momentous event such as this, it's only fitting that we start it off by having two previous victors of previous tournaments spar. Showcasing the strength of previous generations and what the current generation of fighters may potentially grow into."

Hearing what Oobleck said, the audience was getting excited over who the fighters would be. Their excited chatter was silenced when Port began to speak. "I believe it's time to introduce our first Huntsman. He's a warrior who graduated from Beacon Academy after a few mishaps caused him and his team to be held back a year, but that still gave him another chance to participate in the Vytal Festival Tournaments," Port told the crowd and everyone watching the event on TV. "He's the Stalwart Swordsman! The Undaunted Hunter! The Minotaur of Menagerie," Port exclaimed as he read off titles that described the fighter, causing Fragment Hunter to immediately realize who the first Huntsman was when they heard the last title. "He's Terracotta Gaia!"

When Port called out Terracotta's name, the Bull Faunus approached the center of the battlefield with his sword, Sarangay, resting on his shoulder. Terracotta not only had his sword, but he carried a shotgun on his back and a pistol on a holster attached to his belt. Stepping into the middle of the arena, Terra lifted his sword into the air as the crowd cheered for what would likely be a good battle. "Oh, I feel sorry for the sucker who's fighting him," Rua said as she crossed her arms.

"And now, we shall introduce Terracotta's opponent," Oobleck said as the audience calmed down. "And I should tell you this now, they have battled each other before."

"He's a man who has traveled Remnant and fought many adversaries in his way after graduating from Shade Academy in Vacuo. A Huntsman with a brave soul that won't stop until he's helped whoever calls out for it. He's the Raptor of Remnant! The Fighting Falcon! He's Ventus Gaia," Port announced and watched as Ventus zoomed through the battlefield with his Semblance, waving to the audience until he made a three-point landing in front of Terracotta. The Peregrine Falcon Faunus stretched his arms and legs before facing his brother and smirked.

"Terracotta and Ventus grew up in Menagerie, where Terracotta's family adopted Ventus and the two trained to become Huntsmen," Oobleck explained to everyone watching. "These brothers have faced off against more than just the Creatures of Grimm and other fighters. They have also been battling hatred and inequality because of their Faunus heritage."

"But that doesn't matter to them as they have made their careers about helping the Kingdoms and defeating Grimm," Port exclaimed. "Now then, I'm sure that everyone wants to see their battle to kick off the Vytal Festival Tournament." Hearing Port's commentary, the crowd cheered in agreement as the two Huntsmen prepared for battle.

* * *

Ventus smiled as he inspected the greaves on his legs and looked at his older brother. "This is going to be fun, isn't it," Ven said.

"That might all depend," Terracotta remarked as he placed his sword on his back and exchanged it for the shotgun. "You know how several of our battles went back in Menagerie."

"Those scars from me and Ghira should prove that I'm still able to hurt you," Ventus stated as he pointed at Terracotta's chest with his knife.

"Oh, I know you are," Terracotta replied. "But, let's just see who can do what in this fight," the Bull Faunus added as he held his shotgun. Ventus only laughed happily in response before getting into a fighting stance when the platform in the center of the arena raised. As it did, screens in the arena showed Aura readouts for both Terracotta and Ventus.

"Three, two, one, start the match," Port announced and signaled for Terracotta and Ventus to begin their spar for the opening ceremony of the Vytal Festival Tournament. Pulling his goggles over his eyes, Ventus immediately used his speedy Semblance to rush toward Terracotta and deliver a powerful punch to the Bull Faunus' jaw. While the strike did push Terracotta back, the Huntsman was unfazed by the punch and countered by grabbing at Ventus' arm. Throwing the Falcon Faunus to the ground, Terra aimed his shotgun and fired it. Ventus immediately flew away from the blast and kicked at the weapon to disarm Terracotta. Zipping into the air to catch the firearm and cocking it immediately when he got his hands on the weapon, Ventus aimed the shotgun at Terra and pulled the trigger. The blast nailed Terracotta in the chest, but his Aura blocked most of the damage as the readout for him dropped down 88%. "And it seems that Ventus already has the advantage over his brother," Port commented.

Terracotta only narrowed his eyes at the gun in Ventus' hands and immediately, the flying Huntsman found himself struggling to hold onto the weapon as he saw Terra rush toward him for a quick punch. The impact sent Ventus reeling backward, but he corrected himself and started to float in the air. "Forgot about that," Ventus muttered to himself as he wiped the corner of his mouth. Soon, the brothers began to fight with hand-to-hand combat. Terracotta's brute force and grabs proved to be powerful enough to leave cracks in the floor of the platform, but Ventus used his faster kick-based techniques to circle around Terracotta and keep striking him. As the fight continued, Ventus began to slow down while Terra seemed to become faster.

"And it seems that the elder Gaia brother is making use of his Semblance as well," Oobleck said to the audience. "Terracotta has the power to manipulate the weight of any object he touches, which allows him to transfer the weight to anything else he came into contact with. As you can see, he is likely using it to put his own weight into Ventus' armor in order to slow him down."

"But it doesn't seem to be stopping Ven at all," Port exclaimed as Ventus grabbed at Terracotta's shoulders with his talons and flipped him onto the floor hard enough to leave a crater.

In the audience, the members of Fragment Hunter were discussing the battle. "That explains why he can do so many of those things when he spars with us," Celadon remarked as she remembered Team SLVR and Team SAFR's first match against Azalea's father. "I must say, I never expected that sort of ability from him."

"Yeah, it really helped with training back home," Azalea said as she remembered her father's exercises where he gradually added extra weight to her when doing chores and sparing. Back on the battlefield, Terracotta jumped back onto his feet before he pulled out a pistol and his sword, Sarangay. Aiming the pistol, Terra shot at Ventus three times. Ventus countered by kicking at the air and fired bullets from his greaves, shooting the bullets flying toward him. When the shots deflected each other, Terracotta sped toward Ven with his sword and swung the blade down. Jumping to the side, Ventus dodged the attack and pulled out his knife.

Zipping past Terracotta multiple times, Ventus slashed away at the Bull Faunus with every pass he made. Terra was able to see the attacks coming, but he could only block about half of the knife strikes with his vambraces. With a rising slash from behind, Ventus cut away at Terracotta's Aura levels more until they were lowered down to 57%. Flying above Terracotta, Ventus began to unleash a barrage of bullets from his greaves to damage the minotaur even further. Quickly spinning his sword, Terra deflected every shot and used the Earth Dust in Sarangay to create a large rock to throw at the Falcon Faunus. Ven saw this attack and flew out of the way, but his eyes widened in shock as Terracotta continued to use the Dust in his claymore to send shards of rock flying. With sharp stones flying at him like a hailstorm of gunfire, Ventus had to use some clever and agile evasive maneuvers to avoid the attack.

Looking at the Aura readouts on the screens around the arena, Ventus saw his own Aura levels slowly lowering down to about 60% before Terracotta jumped up at him and delivered a painfully powerful heel drop. The impact sent Ventus crashing to the ground and made another crater in the platform. Ventus groaned as he tried to get up and gasped as he watched Terra falling toward him for a smashing punch. Rolling out of the way, Ventus dodged the attack and countered by holding himself up with one hand and roundhouse kicking at Terracotta. However, Terracotta just as quickly countered by performing the same move and the impact from both kicks sent the fighters flying out of the crater. "Don't forget that I was the one who taught you that technique," Terracotta said as he rushed toward Ventus and clotheslined the Falcon Faunus. Ventus grunted from the force of the attack and went spinning into the air before he corrected himself. "I'd say that things are pretty close," Terracotta remarked as he and Ven looked at the Aura readouts.

Everyone could see that Terracotta's Aura level was at 42% while Ventus' was at 36%. "Let's stop messing around and get to the real action," Ventus said as he opened his greaves to place in Dust crystals.

"Like the reverse avalanche and me dropping you like a meteor wasn't packed with enough action," Terracotta joked to himself as he grabbed a crystal of Gravity Dust from his coat pocket. "Ready when you are, little brother."

Placing Ice Dust crystals in his greaves, Ventus closed them and grinned at Terra as he pulled out his combat knife. Speeding around Terracotta, Ventus used the Wind Dust in his knife and the Ice Dust in his greaves to create a swirling storm of ice and snow to distract the larger Huntsman. Blinded by the makeshift weather change, Terracotta spun around and the swing of his sword created a blade of air that blew away the snow. As it cleared, Terracotta saw that the floor beneath him was now covered in a sheet of ice, which also froze his discarded weapons and feet to the platform. "Take this," Ventus cried out as he zoomed toward Terra and hit him in the shoulder with a flying kick. When Terracotta was knocked loose, he spun onto the ground and started to slide toward the edge of the platform. Ventus smiled at his nearing victory when Terracotta flew off the edge, but that quickly changed when he didn't see his brother fall. "Oh, come on! This is just like those pranks you pulled on me when we were back home," Ventus shouted in irritation.

Everyone watching was amazed at Terra as they saw him use the Gravity Dust he carried combined with his Weight Manipulation Semblance to avoid falling and land on the forcefield protecting the audience. Looking at where he landed, Terracotta smiled and waved to Fragment Hunter. "Hi, Princess," Terra said to Azalea before kicking off the shield and essentially flying back at Ventus for another punch. Ventus tried to dodge, but Terracotta used his Semblance and Gravity Dust to force the Falcon Faunus down in a field of increased gravity. Struggling underneath the new intense weight, Ventus could only whimper as his brother collided into him for a punch that floored him. Terra rolled to a three-point landing behind his downed opponent and looked at the Aura readouts. Ventus had his Aura lowered into the red at 11% while he was still standing strong at around 30%.

"And with Ventus Gaia's Aura lowered, he has been defeated," Port announced in an enthusiastic voice. Everyone in the audience cheered at the epic battle they saw, chanting the name of 'Gaia' over and over as the brothers stood up and raised their hands to wave to the audience. "We have just witnessed an amazing battle between two warriors of a past generation!"

"Indeed, we did," Oobleck added. "And this is what our participants for the 40th Vytal Festival Tournament can potentially do themselves. Maybe even surpass these two and other Huntsmen and Huntresses! We can only watch their battles later and find out for ourselves."

"Right, you are, Bartholomew," Port agreed. "We hope that all of you watching enjoyed this battle because that was only a sample of what will come later as the tournament progresses. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day as the first teams reach the arena for the first round of the Team Battles!"

* * *

After Terracotta and Ventus left the battlefield, they met up with Fragment Hunter and the others at the fairgrounds. "You two were amazing," Pinkie exclaimed with stars in her eyes. "You were all 'Pow', 'Woosh', 'Clang', 'Smash'! It was so cool!"

"Alright, Bubblegum. Let them breathe after everything they just did," Slate remarked as he gave his sister a noogie. Pinkie only laughed at her brother's action as she tried to stop him.

"They remind me of us," Terracotta said to Ven as he watched the Quartz Siblings mess around with each other.

"Yeah, except that they probably don't use Gravity Dust to pin each other to the wall and doodle on their faces while they sleep," Ventus joked. Pinkie and Slate heard what Ventus said, but one look from the brother was all it took to shoot down the idea faster than a Grimm. "I'm hungry after that fight. Let's get something to eat," Ventus stated.

"Get whatever you want. My treat," Valencia told everyone as she held a credit card in her fingers. The members of Fragment Hunter all rushed off to find food for themselves and separated to where they wanted to go. "You could at least wait for me. I'm the one with the card," Valencia said to herself as she swore that she saw dust clouds in the shape of each teenager.

While everyone left to go get popcorn, noodles, candy, or anything else, Azalea wandered around to search for what she wanted. Soon, she came across a stand that had a few familiar faces. "Hey, if it isn't the girl who helped stop that Leviathan back home," a Bear Faunus said as he gave Percival Ivory some taiyaki. "How's everything going?"

"It's okay for now. I'm actually a little nervous about battling in the tournament, though," Azalea told the two.

"Some food might help. You want a box of taiyaki," the cook asked as he offered the snack to Azalea.

"That would be nice of you," Azalea said as she paid the man.

"Why are you nervous anyway," Percival asked as he swallowed one of the fish-shaped treats. "The crowd?"

"Pretty much," Azalea stated.

"It'll be easier to battle in front of an audience if you focus on the task at hand," Percival said. "Picture a goal in your head and it'll be the only thing that you need to worry about. It shouldn't matter if you mess up once or twice in front of somebody. All you need to do is focus on what you need to accomplish."

Azalea smiled as at Percival as her order was finished. "Thank you," she said to both the cook and Percival. "See you later, Percy."

"I'm never going to hear the end of that nickname," Percival muttered as he watched Azalea leave and only ate more of his snack.

Soon, Azalea met saw Rebecca, Vixen, Vinyl, and Celadon having lunch at a noodle stand. She watched as her mother, Ivy joined them and sat down beside the other girls. "Man, that battle was so cool," Vixen remarked as she brought up the battle between Azalea's father and uncle.

"Considering both of them were fighters with years of experience, their strength is something you would think they have," Rebecca stated as she separated a pair of chopsticks and started enjoying her bowl of ramen.

"Most of their techniques were flawless," Celadon said. "That snow storm was a smart move from Ventus."

"He probably improvised it like he usually does," Ivy told the girls as she ordered a bowl. "He tends to just wing it whenever he does anything in battle and charges ahead."

"I kind of remember that," Vixen voiced as she thought back to Team SLVR's Bounty mission in Vale after the Breach.

"It works for him about as much as it gets him into trouble," Ivy added.

"He and Terracotta tell you about a lot of their missions," Rebecca asked as she was curious as to why Ivy knew so much about Ventus.

"Yes," Ivy answered just as her bowl of noodles was served. "Thank you," Ivy said to the chef as she paid for the meal. Slurping up her food, Ivy seemed to attract some wide-eyed attention from the chef, Vinyl, Celadon, and Vixen. Sighing in satisfaction when she swallowed, Ivy looked at her new audience and just chuckled. "I have that effect on people," she said before she saw Azalea. "How's everything going, Sugarcube?"

"Just little anxious about my first battle of the tournament," Azalea explained. "Percy said I should just focus on one thing in the fight and that could help me with ignoring the crowd."

"Sounds like good advice to me," Ivy agreed. "It seems like something I would have said." Azalea nodded in agreement before Ivy continued talking. "Azalea, you've come such a long way since Sanctuary Academy. No matter what people say about you, just remember what you were able to do despite how they thought you would do. You are a warrior just like your father. Never let harsh words get in your way."

Azalea smiled at her mother and the two embraced each other in a big hug before the intercom sounded off again. "Would Team FCSA please collect their equipment and report to the battlefield? Your battle begins in 10 minutes," Oobleck announced.

"Sounds like you're up first out of your friends," Ivy voiced. Hearing what Doctor Oobleck said, Azalea had a determined look on her face as she started heading off. "Isn't the locker room in the other direction," Ivy asked as she saw Azalea going to the dorms.

"I need to grab some stuff in my room first. Go grab a seat with the others," Azalea said. Ivy, Celadon, Vixen, Rebecca, and Vinyl all looked at each other before they headed off for Amity Colosseum. Azalea marched forward and eventually reached her dorm room. Opening the door, she opened the music box and listened to it as she changed her clothes. "After today, everyone is going to see a new side to me," Azalea said to herself as she pulled out the gift from Bianca underneath her bed.

* * *

 **Okay! With this chapter done, we have officially started Volume 3 of RWBY for Sideline and Fragment Hunter! Because we only saw the battle between RWBY and ABRN in the first episode and not some sort of actual ceremony or whatever, I thought that a spar between previous winners of the tournaments would make for a good and exciting thing in the story. An actual opening ceremony for something like this would have had Ozpin say something, but I thought that he might have been busy with Ironwood and the rest of his inner circle.**

 **As for the battle, I thought that having Terracotta and Ventus dueling would be super awesome to show off just what they can be capable of. Their battle would have the song "Reverse/Re:birth" from Kamen Rider OOO playing as I associate it with both characters. And the translated lyrics can be something I'll work into their past together.**

 **The next chapter is something I have been planning for since early on in the story AND I'M SO HYPED TO GET IT OUT ASAP! I'm** _ **really**_ **excited to write it and I hope that you enjoy reading it when I post it. You'll be able to see what will happen with Azalea and everything that she's been working on since the photo shoot with Bianca. Just you wait!**

 **And all of this is just in time for RWBY Volume 6. That's going to be fun as well! I swear, I've never really been so much of a fan of something like this before. RWBY has really impacted me over these last few years. I never would have done something like this back in high school unless I discovered the show back then. But, enough about me and being a fanboy. I'll see you all in the reviews, so please leave some comments if you enjoyed this chapter and be sure to stay tuned for Chapter 41.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	41. Grudge Match: FCSA vs JADE

**Hey, everyone! WaterDragonMaverick here with Chapter 41 of "Sideline: Another Story" and the first match of the Vytal Festival Tournament using my characters! With the event up and running, we'll now move onto the first match that Fragment Hunter takes part in. Team FCSA is battling first out of the characters and they'll be fighting a team I've been wanting Azalea to confront for a** _ **long**_ **time. Get ready for more action and emotion in this chapter!**

 **CAN'T ESCAPE FROM CROSSING FATE!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own all of my Original Characters featured in this story**

* * *

Team FCSA waited for Azalea as they stood in the battlefield of Amity Colosseum. They were looking around at the crowd before they faced each other to talk about what was taking their teammate so long. "Is she nervous about the crowd? She wasn't that troubled when she fought Tremor at the concert," Layla asked as she saw Azalea wasn't with them yet.

"What's taking her so long," Cereza wondered as she checked her Scroll. "She should be here soon or we might be disqualified," she said as she texted the girl in question. After another moment, a reply was given and Cereza read it. "On my way in now. Just had to get changed and grab my weapon from my locker."

"At least she'll be here soon," Slate said with a relieved sigh.

"Yeah, I can't wait to deal with that Dairy Cow on the battlefield," a girl's voice said, causing Team FCSA to look where it came from and glared in response. The one who insulted Azalea was Envy Sinn of Team JADE as the other members of her team joined them. "Even if she doesn't show up, I bet we can still have some fun beating the gunslinger around again," Envy voiced.

"No complaints here," Jet Pitch agreed as he chewed a toothpick. "Right, Aoi?"

"Right," Aoi Lobelia replied with a sinister grin.

"You three make me sick," Duke Cobalt muttered as he avoided looking at his 'team'.

In the audience, the rest of Fragment Hunter sat in their seats with several others joining them. Ivy, Ventus, Terracotta, Mason Stonehaven and Valencia, Bianca Coloratura, Pinkie, Aurora, and Nocturne all sat around together. Sunset even looked around the arena and searched for anybody else they recognized. Being a sniper in combat, Sunset was glad that she had good eyesight as she saw Team GLOW from Atlas, Team PRDT from Vacuo, Team RWBY and Team JNPR, Lucifer Fujita, and a number of others. However, she could have sworn that she saw Smoke Shadow and his allies in the regular seats of the crowd. Looking again and focusing, Sunset _did_ see that the thieves were there. However, it seemed that they were just there for the tournament as she saw Tremor holding a number of giant popcorn buckets as he sat down. _"Looks like they aren't going to be a problem for now,"_ Sunset thought to herself before looking at the battlefield. _"Those three on the other hand..."_

As Team FCSA essentially had a staring contest with the bullies, Azalea finally showed up. "Hey, guys. I'm here," she said before seeing who their opponents were. "Oh..."

"Looks like the Melon Farmer finally came," Envy remarked as her eyes turned green.

"Hello, Dairy Cow," Aoi greeted with a sickeningly sweet tone.

"How lucky are we that we get to fight in the first round," Jet stated as he pointed to the group with his hook swords.

"That depends on your definition of luck," Slate countered. After turning away from the students from Mistral, he looked at what Azalea was wearing. It appeared that she was wearing one of her original baggy green sweaters, a pair of black leather pants, and a pair of cowboy boots. She also removed her bandanna completely to show off her horns. "Is that all you changed into," Slate asked as he looked at Azalea, noticing that she also had piercings in her ears.

"Not exactly," the Cow Faunus said with a slightly cryptic tone. As Slate and the girls wondered what Azalea was talking about, everyone in Amity Colosseum heard Professor Port and Doctor Oobleck doing commentary.

* * *

"And with the final member of Team FCSA here, we have everyone gathered for the match," Port announced. "I'm sure that this will be a fight for everyone to remember, especially our latecomer, Azalea Calla Holstein."

"Yes, Miss Holstein grew up in the town of Mirabelle with her mother and father, Ivy Dahlia Holstein and Terracotta Gaia," Doctor Oobleck explained to the viewers. "She trained with most of Team JADE at Sanctuary Academy back in Anima, but they were very hostile toward her. They have also been antagonizing Azalea and her friends since they arrived. I would like to point out that at Beacon, we do _not_ tolerate Team JADE's actions at all," the doctor said as he had a stern face.

"Indeed," Port agreed with narrowed eyes. "While they are skilled, it's only matched by their horrible attitudes in and out of classes they have attended." After giving his opinion on Team JADE, his tone changed immediately. "But enough about them, Professor!"

"Doctor," Oobleck corrected Port as the latter made sure to remind his associate of his Ph.D. before allowing the boisterous Huntsman to continue.

"Let's continue with Team FCSA of Beacon! Not only have they shown great talent in classes as well, but they have also been helping the rising music star, Bianca Coloratura," Port stated. "They have been protecting the idol and have even played as her band in her concert held before the Vytal Festival started along with the members of Team SLVR and Team SAFR. If you ask me, these three teams certainly have plenty of fans in the audience. And I think I see a few now."

Looking around the stands, the cameras for broadcasting the tournament zoomed in on a number of fans for Team FCSA. Several boys held up signs of the three girls of the team while a number of girls did the same with pictures of Slate. A few of them even had photos of Slate and Azalea blown up with hearts around them, which some people thought it was because they were very big fans of the two or that they thought they made a cute couple. "It does seem that there is a good deal of fans in the audience," Oobleck commented as the camera soon focused on Pinkie bouncing around the stands, cheering on her brother and Team FCSA. "Some more vocal than others," he added with a deadpan tone as he watched the members of Fragment Hunter try to keep Pinkie in her seat as the energetic girl started waving around a pink pair of pom-poms.

"Let's move onto choosing the battlefield for our match, shall we," Port said as screens appeared around the arena. Images of locations switched around rapidly before they began to slow down. The section of screens near Team FCSA stopped and the superstructure behind them opened to allow a biome to raise up for their side of the battlefield. A large number of floating platforms rose up behind Team FCSA and the four looked behind themselves to see what the biome for the match was. "And it looks like Team FCSA has the Anti-Gravity Biome for their side of the field," Port remarked as the platforms moved in all sorts of directions. "This might be tricky for both sides."

After the teams and audience took in the sight of the platforms, the screens on Team JADE's side stopped moving and their side of the arena changed into a forest biome. "Team JADE now has the Forest Biome for their area. Plenty of cover for them to take advantage of," Oobleck commented. "Now, I believe that with the areas chosen, we may begin the fight," the doctor said before he heard a knock on the door to the commentator's booth. "Who could that be?"

* * *

"This battle seems like it might be difficult," Layla said as she looked at the forest behind Team JADE and the platforms behind Team FCSA.

"Wouldn't be the Vytal Festival if it wasn't," Slate said as he drew his revolvers. "You going to be okay with this," he asked Azalea.

Azalea only looked at Team JADE with a certain look in her eyes before she turned to her friends. "Yeah. I'll be good," Azalea replied. Before she could grab her Multi-Action Dust Baton, music began to play from the speakers around the arena. A violin was playing and everyone was wondering who was responsible for the song it played. "Where is it that coming from," Azalea asked before she looked at the screen that displayed the commentator's booth, seeing that Port and Oobleck were joined by somebody else. "Vinyl?"

To the surprise of Fragment Hunter and the audience, Vinyl Aurum was Port and Oobleck in their booth. "While this is not something the tournament has allowed before, it seems that Miss Aurum of Team SAFR and a friend of Team FCSA has requested to provide music for the battle," Oobleck explained to everyone. "We have allowed her to do it just for this battle as she does need to focus on her own match later."

"Oh-ho! Personally, I like the idea of this grudge match having musical accompaniment in order to make everything seem more dramatic and emotional," Port stated as Vinyl rested her arm on Port's shoulders as he sat. Vinyl only raised a finger toward the screen and pointed, seemingly showing that she was helping out Azalea. The Faunus girl smiled in return before preparing for the fight as the music changed from a violin to more of a rock tune. "3, 2, 1, begin," Port counted down and started the fight between FCSA and JADE.

Immediately, Team JADE ran toward FCSA and started on separating the group. Getting between them and using Wind Dust, Aoi unleashed a powerful gust of wind that pushed the members of in every direction. As they went flying, each member of Team FCSA used their weapons to try and hit the other team. Unfortunately for them, Duke used his Trajectory Manipulation Semblance to redirect every single bullet that was fired, causing them to miss their targets. As they landed on the ground, Team FCSA knew that they needed to deal with Duke Cobalt first if they wanted to win the fight. "Follow my lead," Cereza shouted to her team as they separated and went to the Anti-Gravity Biome of the field.

"You aren't going to get away that easily," Aoi said as she used her Laser Vision Semblance to try and blast at the closest enemy, which happened to be Cereza. However, the leader of Team FCSA anticipated the attack and smirked as she dodged. Activating her Time Mirage Semblance, Cereza was the first to take cover behind the floating platforms while her teammates caught up. Aoi growled in anger when she saw that Cereza somehow got away from her.

Team FCSA joined together on one of the platforms and they all ended up standing on the side of it as they spoke. "Alright. We need to figure out how to get to Duke," Cereza explained. "I'm sure that Azalea can use her Semblance to do just that."

"Let me go for him," Slate voiced. "If it wasn't for him showing up the first time, I would've beaten those bullies when I challenged them."

"What about his Semblance? You can't shoot him," Layla reminded.

"I'm not just a gunslinger anymore," Slate told the girls as they remembered all the physical training Slate had received from Terracotta.

Cereza thought it over for a second before giving her plan. "Okay. Slate with challenge Duke and get him into the forest. I'll fight alongside Layla to distract Envy and Aoi. You think you can handle Jet, Azalea?" Before the Faunus could answer, the group heard gunshots. "Move now!" Dodging out of the way, Team FCSA narrowly avoided gunfire from Duke as he used his Semblance to guide his attacks as he hid in the Forest Biome.

"Team JADE is already making things troubling for Team FCSA," Oobleck said from the booth. "How will things go for the team from Beacon?"

With their enemy on the move, Aoi let Envy take her Semblance for herself and the two began blasting at Azalea with their lasers. But before they could attempt to get a clean hit, Layla used her Telekinesis to push the two girls back while Cereza rushed at them with her Time Mirage. Punching and kicking away at the two, Cereza knocked the two down and took out enough of their Aura to lower the two down to around 80% each. Cereza smirked in satisfaction as she adjusted her glasses with her weapon before pointed the tonfa at her opponents.

* * *

Duke and Jet were hiding away in the Forest Biome as Slate and Azalea searched for them in the trees. "Come on out, Cobalt," Slate exclaimed. Hearing somebody behind himself and knowing it wasn't Azalea, Slate aimed his revolver behind his back and pulled the trigger. As his shot rang out, the strength of the recoil allowed Slate to easily go into a roundhouse kick that nailed the person in the chin. As he did, the bullet bounced around the trees and hit his target in the arm, causing them to cry out. Turning to see who it was, Slate holstered his guns as he stared down Duke Cobalt. "Lucky me," Slate said as he adjusted his stance.

Staring each other down as Duke shook off the damage, the two boys threw kicks at each other. While Slate was faster than Duke, Duke still had an advantage with his weapon's sword form. As Duke slashed at Slate, the gunslinger from Vacuo had to maneuver himself to avoid getting hit by the blade. Thankfully, Slate's training with Terracotta and Ventus gave him plenty of experience with dodging all sorts of weapons, which allowed him to get in close to Duke and disarm him. With both gunslingers without their weapons, Duke went for a kick of his own that ended up getting deflected by Slate and the latter countered with a punch to the jaw. Duke groaned in pain as he held his mouth.

"It appears that Slate Quartz is dominating his duel with Duke Cobalt," Port commented. "He really should find a way around that glass jaw." While Duke tried to get back up, Slate kicked away at Duke until his Aura was lowered to around 33%.

"Just how are you this strong," Duke asked in confusion. "You used guns when you fought before."

"I've had training since then and now," Slate said as he ran toward Duke for a flying kick. Duke ducked underneath the attack, but failed to see Slate jump off a tree and punch Duke in the back of the head. With a powerful punch, Duke was knocked down as his Aura readout lowered even more.

"And with that attack, Duke Cobalt's Aura has been lowered enough for a knockout," Port exclaimed. "Team FCSA takes the lead now!" Slate looked to see that his Aura had been lowered to around 66% and as he kept looking at the screens, they began to play his duel with Duke again and show highlights of it. "However, it looks like Aoi Lobelia and Envy Sinn have the advantage over Team FCSA with their teamwork," Port stated as the screen now showed the girls of Team JADE using Dust and lasers to deal heavy damage to Cereza and Layla.

"Not if I can help it," Slate said as he began to run back to the other side of the battlefield. But as he did, Jet traversed the treetops using his hook swords to grab onto branches before flying up and landing on Slate's back just as he left the biome. "Argh! What the?" Feeling Jet keeping his foot on him, Slate cried out in pain as he looked at the Aura readouts again. Seeing that he was now lowered to 40%, Cereza was knocked down to 38%, and Layla was at 27%, things were looking bad. They soon got worse as he felt ice covering his body and looked to see Aoi looking down at him.

"Well, well, well. Looks like the cowboy's back," Aoi said as he spun her staff around to create daggers made of icicles and dropped them onto Slate's back, lowering his Aura even more. "I wouldn't try calling for help if I were you. Those other girls have their hands full with Envy." Slate saw that Aoi was right as he could see Envy using Layla's Semblance to throw Cereza around like a ragdoll. "And it seems like Veal Cut is too scared of us to do anything," Aoi taunted as she mocked Azalea. Slate only growled in anger as his teammate was insulted.

"Looks like the Dairy Cow's nowhere to be found," Jet remarked with a mocking smile. "Finish him off, Aoi."

"With pleasure," Aoi said as her eyes turned red and she was about to shoot Slate with her Laser Vision. But just as she fired her attack, the lasers were deflected before they even touched Slate. "Huh?!" Confused by what happened, Aoi soon felt a powerful impact to her stomach and was sent flying into Jet. Slate saw what happened and smiled as Azalea revealed herself. "Livestock," Aoi shouted in confused anger.

"Stay away from my boyfriend," Azalea told her old bullies as she pointed her baton at them.

* * *

"Well, at least she admits it now," Sunset remarked as she used her Semblance to make sure everyone heard what Azalea and the others were saying.

"About time," Ivy, Valencia, and Bianca said as they smiled.

"Let's see how she does," Terracotta stated as he watched the battle continue.

* * *

Azalea stood before her old bullies from Sanctuary Academy and glared at them as she used her baton to melt to ice pinning Slate down. Jet and Aoi scowled at Azalea before they rushed toward her with their weapons. Aoi used Fire Dust in her staff to strike at the horned Faunus while Jet slashed at her with her hook swords, but Azalea either managed to dodge the attacks or block them with her forearms. While she didn't take any damage, Azalea's sweater was getting torn up as the sleeves and collar started to get singed and cut. Kicking away at the two, Azalea was given some breathing room as they went flying back into the Forest Biome. But just as she caught her breath, Slate saw Envy running toward Azalea. "Lea, look out," Slate exclaimed as he intercepted Envy and grabbed at her. When he did, his viridian-colored Aura flashed and a laser shot from the forest to try and hit a target, which ended up being Envy as Slate let go at the last second.

"It appears that just as Slate's Aura began to fall down to the red, he made sure that Envy Sinn was hit by her own teammate's attack," Oobleck announced as he explained what just happened.

"A truly noble action," Port complimented. "Sacrificing oneself to save a teammate. There are many Huntsmen and Huntresses who have done the same in their lives."

As Slate stepped back from the battlefield to check on Cereza and Layla, he turned to Azalea. "Kick some butt," he told her.

Azalea nodded and turned back to Team JADE as the bullies stood at the edge of the Forest Biome. "Bitch," Aoi shouted as she used her Semblance to shoot at Azalea. The farm girl just smiled at this and let the attack come closer as it bounced off her body. "W-what?! HOW!?"

"Looks like Azalea's Semblance is really helpful against Miss Lobelia's," Port remarked.

"Yes, originally Miss Holstein could only use her Semblance to bend light around herself to turn invisible for short periods of time," Oobleck explained. "But with everything that she has gone through since coming to Beacon, her ability has evolved to where her invisibility lasts longer, but she can also create bursts of light that can blind others like a flashbang grenade and deflect light-based weaponry." Vinyl nodded in agreement as she was responsible for helping discover that last ability.

"Fine, if lasers won't work on you, how about this," Aoi exclaimed as she used her Laser Vision to cut a large tree down. Envy used her sword's whip form to pull it high enough for Jet to grab onto it with his hook swords and throw the tree down at Azalea. As the tree flew toward her, Azalea only braced herself and caught the entire thing. Looking up at Team JADE, the bullies knew they messed up as everyone was amazed at what they were seeing.

* * *

"I knew that wouldn't work," Bianca remarked from the stands. "Azalea's a bit of a badass."

"Runs in the family," Ventus added as he looked at Terracotta and Ivy.

"Same with looks," Mason Stonehaven added as Valencia and Ivy smiled.

"Go get them, Azalea," Pinkie cheered on with the rest of Fragment Hunter voicing their own words of encouragement.

On the other side of the stands, Smoke Shadow and his friends voiced their own thoughts on what they saw. "Man, I didn't think she would be that strong," Tremor remarked as he shoved a large handful of popcorn into his mouth.

"I guess we need to expect anything from Azalea and the rest of her friends," Smoke said as he continued to watch the battle with interest and steal bites of popcorn from Tremor.

Team PRDT and Team GLOW were enjoying the fight as they saw Azalea handle herself against Team JADE. "Come on! You can do it, Lea," called out Percival. The rest of Team PRDT cheered on their new friend with their leader while Team GLOW watched on in excited interest.

* * *

Throwing the tree that she held in her hands at Team JADE, Azalea watched as the three worked together to slice the tree apart. "Is that the best you can do," Azalea asked as she looked at the bullies. "Because I can do this all day," she boasted as she pulled at her ruined sweater just as the music Vinyl provided changed to a new song. Tearing the ruined sweater off of herself, Azalea revealed just what she was wearing underneath it, surprising almost everyone who knew her. With the sweater ripped off, Azalea wore a sleeveless purple leather jacket with metal studs around shoulders and on the collar, a pair of vambraces on her forearms, a fuchsia tank top, and her regular choker. Along with that, she revealed that she was using her Semblance to hide armor that was on her new pants, with pieces on her knees that would help deal damage and a single modified greave on her right shin. As she threw her destroyed sweater away, her hair moved to show an emblem of a butterfly with diamond-patterned wings next to a gladiolus flower.

"SWEET SEXY SUPERNOVA," Vinyl exclaimed as she, Port, and Oobleck got a better look at Azalea's outfit.

"Oh-ho-ho! Looks like the shy Azalea has acquired a bold new outfit that's fitting for a Huntress," Port said. "Just like a butterfly emerging from a chrysalis, we seem to have a new warrior in the world."

"It appears so, Peter," Oobleck agreed. "Azalea seems to have also been using her Semblance to hide her armor. Let's see how it will assist her in the rest of this round."

The audience went nuts over Azalea's new outfit as the members of Fragment Hunter were speechless, but Bianca smiled brightly at the sight. _"You finally put it on,"_ Bianca thought to herself as she looked at Azalea on the battlefield.

"Like a change of clothes is going to help you fight us," Envy shouted as she glared at Azalea.

"You'd be surprised," Azalea retorted as she lightly stomped her right foot and the greave opened up to release something from inside. Catching it, Azalea revealed that it was a second Multi-Acton Dust Baton as she extended the weapon and combined it with her first one, transforming the two batons into a staff of her own. "I've changed more than just my outfit," she said as her eyes changed from a vibrant green color to a ruby red. Jet, Aoi, and Envy all growled as they stared down the determined Azalea with hatred. The three rushed toward their opponent, but as they went for their strikes, Azalea countered by grabbing at Envy and throwing her into the others. "That's for pelting me with water balloons!"

As the bullies picked themselves up, Azalea used her Semblance's 'Flash Bang' ability to blind the three before turning invisible, retreating to another area of the battlefield. "Where is she," Aoi snarled as she and the others looked around.

"The cow could be anywhere," Jet stated as he prepared to defend himself. "Spilt up and take her down," he ordered the girls as he went back to the Forest Biome.

"OLLY OLLY OXEN BITCH," Envy shouted as she tried to goad Azalea out of hiding as she went toward the Anti-Gravity Biome while Aoi stayed in the center of the arena. "Where are you, you damn Dairy Cow!?"

"Right here," Azalea said as she revealed herself to be hanging upside-down thanks to one of the platforms. Taking advantage of her jump scare she caused Envy, Azalea unleashed a flurry of punches to the bully's face and chest. With one final punch, Envy was sent flying back toward the center of the field from Azalea's raw strength. "That's for shredding my clothes!" Layla and Cerzea made their way to Azalea to see how she was doing. "I'll need your help keeping them in the center of the arena. When I give the signal, keep them there," Azalea told the girls.

"Yeah, okay," Cereza replied as she was still surprised at Azalea's new outfit and drive to fight Team JADE.

"You got it, Lea," Layla agreed as the Faunus girl turned invisible again.

* * *

As Jet searched through the Forest Biome for any sign of Azalea, he heard Port and Oobleck giving commentary. "Azalea's really giving Team JADE a run for their money," Port said as a clip of Azalea beating down Envy and sending the girl flying was shown.

"Yes, I believe that things are looking to be in favor of Team FCSA," Oobleck added.

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Jet muttered to himself just before he heard something. Looking behind himself, he watched as Azalea appeared suddenly and kicked him out of the forest. "Ow! That girl is going to pay for that," Jet exclaimed as he picked himself up. Seeing that he was near the edge of the Forest Biome, he tried to climb up into the trees with his hook swords in order to hide and get the drop on Azalea. However, he felt a hot wind around himself and looked to see Azalea's staff flying at him with a burning whirlwind surrounding it. "Crap!"

Getting knocked out of the tree and seeing the edge of the forest beginning to burn, Jet watched as Azalea stepped out of the blaze and glare at him with red eyes. "This is for throwing food at me," Azalea said as she punched Jet in the face hard enough to send him flying, caught his leg, pulled him back, and smashed him in the gut hard enough that he went bouncing back into the center of the arena where Envy and Aoi were waiting. "This is for the Rapier Wasps in my locker," she exclaimed as she rushed toward the three and disarmed Aoi of her staff. Using the Lightning Dust in it, Azalea unleashed another 'Flash Bang' to shock all three and ended up separating them. As the bullies recovered from the damage, Azalea broke Aoi's weapon against her knees and threw away the broken staff before pulling out her batons again.

"Bitch," Aoi shouted as she saw what Azalea did to her weapon.

"Look in a mirror lately," Azalea retorted, angering Aoi more as the girl unleashed a large blast with her Laser Vision Semblance. The laser failed to do anything to Azalea, but ended up causing the rest of Team JADE to dodge what bent around Azalea. "This is for burning my textbooks," Azalea said as she continued to list every horrible thing she could remember her former bullies did to torment her at Sanctuary Academy. Grabbing onto Aoi's hair and pulling hard, Aoi cried out in pain before Azalea smacked her around with her baton. Hearing Jet and Envy running her with their swords, Azalea released Aoi from her grip and combined her batons into a staff once more to block their attacks. Switching the Dust settings on both batons, Azalea had electricity channel through the ends and shock her opponents. "This is for calling me all those names like 'Dairy Cow'," she exclaimed as she grabbed Jet, threw her knee into his groin, and threw him into Envy.

"Oh, that _had_ to hurt," Vinyl said as she winced at Jet's pain.

"It did seem like it," Oobleck commented with a grimace on his face while he adjusted his glasses. "But Jet Pitch's Aura is still hanging in there. He's a remarkably durable fighter."

"Either that or Miss Holstein is pulling her punches to make this fight last as long as it has been," Port mused.

Jet moaned in pain and he, Aoi, and Envy picked themselves up once again, glaring at Azalea as she looked down at them. "This is for insulting my family," Azalea said as she changed the Dust settings on her staff and threw it at the three. As she threw it, a whirlwind kicked up and sent the three flying into the air before Azalea grabbed her weapon again and immediately changed the setting to Earth Dust to unleash a number of rocks to hit her enemies. As they landed on the ground, Azalea ran toward them and hit all three with a strong clothesline that downed them back onto the ground. "Now," Azalea called out as she went running toward the Anti-Gravity Biome again and started going up to the highest platform. As she did, Layla and Cereza worked together to use Ice Dust they brought with them and froze Team JADE in place.

"Things aren't over just yet, folks," Port announced as he watched the battle. "After a vicious beatdown on her former bullies, Azalea Calla Holstein has called in her teammates to keep the enemy team in the middle of the arena as she climbs to the highest point she can! Just what is she up to?"

Reaching her destination as the music from Vinyl changed to a dramatic tune, Azalea separated her batons and stomped her right foot to open up her greave. Changing the Dust settings on her batons to Earth and Gravity, she placed the weapons in her greave and closed the armor. "This is for what you did to Slate," Azalea whispered to herself as she raised her armored leg up high. As the cameras focused on Azalea's pose, she jumped up and floated in the air thanks to the Gravity Dust in her armor. Adjusting her position in the air, Azalea soon launched herself forward and went for a flying kick similar to how she and Percival Ivory took out the Leviathan Grimm at Port Mako. With her right foot flying toward Team JADE as they were frozen in place, they could only look on and exclaim in terror as Azalea made contact and broke all three of their Auras. Impacting on the ground, the force of Azalea's Dust-enhanced kick created a crater where she stood in the center of and Team JADE laid defeated in. The audience was amazed by the finishing move as it didn't leave a regular crater, but one in the shape of Azalea's diamond-winged butterfly emblem.

"OUTSTANDING," Oobleck shouted in joy. "What a stylish finish from Azalea and Team FCSA! They will be moving onto the second round and the Doubles Match of the tournament!"

As the audience cheered at the battle's climactic finish, Azalea panted heavily as she processed what she did. She finally put the bullies, who have tormented her since she started Sanctuary Academy, in their place and beat them in a fair fight. Back when she saw that they had come to Beacon for the tournament, she was scared to even confront them. But now, she just finished battling them and _won._ Azalea was feeling so many different emotions all at once and couldn't stop smiling as she did. "Way to go, Azalea! You did it," Slate said as he approached his teammate. Hearing him near her, Azalea's rush of emotion had her forget that the crowd was still watching her and she pounced on Slate, kissing him deeply as they fell to the floor. Slate was surprised at the sudden kiss that kept becoming deeper and more passionate, but didn't object to it.

"Ho ho! It looks like somebody's getting frisky after an excellent victory," Port remarked as he watched Azalea jumped onto Slate and the two began making out.

"Yes, I see it as well," Oobleck commented. "In fact, the whole world sees it," he added. "...let's hope they don't go further," the doctor said as they commentators watched as Slate and Azalea were _not_ stopping.

Back on the battlefield, Cereza and Layla were surprised at what they were watching. "Um, guys," Layla said in order to get their attention, but failed to get a response.

"You _do_ know that you're swapping spit in front of all of Remnant, right," Cereza stated in order to get Azalea to talk.

"Don't care," Azalea quickly replied before she kept kissing Slate.

"Well, they're not going to get off of each other anytime soon," Cereza sighed. "Let's get them out of here," she told Layla and had the girl use her Semblance to carry the teenagers who were making out.

* * *

"I didn't think she had it in her to do _any_ of that," Rua admitted as she watched Azalea and Slate get dragged out of the battlefield telekinetically.

"Neither did I," Sunset said.

"Where did she get that wonderful jacket," Valencia questioned. "Was it you," she asked Bianca, who only smiled and nodded in reply.

"Well, she's definitely your daughter," Mason, Aurora, and Nocturne all said to Ivy and Terracotta. The two Bovine Faunus only chuckled in response.

"They were so awesome," Pinkie exclaimed as she moved around like a hummingbird on a sugar rush. "Did you see that last move," she asked Ventus as she grabbed onto his jacket.

"Yeah, I saw," Ventus said with a grin. "I helped her get the armor for it with General Ironwood," he explained and made Pinkie's smile even larger.

In the rest of the stands, Team PRDT cheered on Azalea's victory while Smoke Shadow and his team talked amongst themselves. "Darn," Smoke said as he snapped his fingers. "She's already taken."

"That armor was a surprise," Oliver Electrum said as he opened up his Scroll. "We'll need to consider what else it can do if she's going to end up facing off against us again."

"I'm honestly just glad she was able to break out of her shell," Veronica Moonstone voiced as she remembered interacting with Azalea a number of times.

"That battle was still amazing, though," Kun Agate, aka Tremor, stated as he took a sip of his drink. "She's definitely going to be one hell of a Huntress."

* * *

After returning to the fairgrounds, Fragment Hunter was able to get Azalea and Slate off of each other as the group went to celebrate Team FCSA's victory. "Sorry... I don't exactly know what came over me," Azalea apologized to Slate with a blushing face.

"I wasn't against it," Slate said as he looked away from his friends. "So... Did you really mean what you said about me?" Azalea remembered that she called Slate her boyfriend during the battle and shyly nodded to answer him. Slate only smiled in return as he placed his hat on Azalea's head, which made her smile back.

"Well, now we have a happy couple," Celadon commented. "Let's enjoy ourselves before the next battle. You really did a number on the arena with that attack," she remarked.

As Fragment Hunter kept talking, Terracotta approached the group to speak with Azalea. While he was silent to start, he embraced his daughter in a big hug and spoke. "I'm so proud of you, Azalea," he said. Azalea hugged her father back as her mother, uncles, and cousin joined in. "I'm sure that all of Mirabelle watched that fight and are partying hard right now."

"I know I would if I wasn't here right now," Ivy joked. "Still, you've grown _so much_ , Azalea. I'm so happy that you did all of that."

"Way to go, Lea," Valencia said. "I can't wait to talk with all of my friends about this."

"Are you leaving already," Lapis asked as she looked at Valenica and Mason.

"Yeah. Business, I'm afraid," Mason replied. "If you end up coming back to Mirabelle, don't be afraid to visit. We need to go now if we want to reach home in time, Valencia."

"Well, I guess we'll see each other again," Valencia said as she gave her cousin one last hug.

"Maybe after the tournament is over," Azalea voiced. "I'll see you some other time, Val. And thanks for the music box." The Stonehaven's waved goodbye to the group as they headed off to return home, leaving Fragment Hunter to enjoy the rest of the Vytal Festival.

* * *

"Enjoying the new jacket," Bianca asked Azalea as the two walked around the fairgrounds together.

"I seriously love this new outfit, B," Azalea said. "This jacket just feels wonderful to wear. It's like I felt like a different person when I put this on earlier."

"Glad to hear that," Bianca replied before she and Azalea saw a mother and her child in front of them. The kid had a notebook and a pen in hand as they looked at the two Faunus girls. "Oh, you want an autograph," Bianca asked as she looked at the kid. They nodded in reply and held out the items to not Bianca, but Azalea. "Well, that's a surprise to me," Bianca remarked with a smile as Azalea pointed to herself in confusion for a brief moment.

"We loved the battle earlier and you were just amazing," the mother told Azalea. "Is it alright if..."

"Sure thing," Azalea said as she took the notebook and signing her name with the pen. As she did, she dotted the 'I' in her last name with a butterfly. Returning the notebook to the kid, they smiled brightly and gave Azalea a hug before returning to their mother's side. "Aww, that was so sweet," Azalea said as she watched the two walk off to see the rest of the fairgrounds.

"Yeah... I always love it when there are children as my fans," Bianca agreed. "You're really becoming different from when we first met. I remember when you and your mom first showed up at my place and you kept hiding behind Ivy."

"Tell me about it," Azalea said as the two began to reminisce about their childhood. As they did, time passed on for them and the next battle that Fragment Hunter was involved with came quickly.

* * *

 **I'M FINALLY DONE! I've finally gotten to the main fight I wanted to make since creating Team JADE! And with it, Azalea's character development is complete! She's no longer the shy girl that she was introduced as. Instead, she's a bold and determined warrior who fights for what she wants to fight for! I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter because I'm going to enjoy a nice break before I get writing more of Sideline or any of my other stories.**

 **Onto the music for the battle which Vinyl provided in-universe. For the start of the match where the violin sounded off and it turned into a rock song, that is actually "Destiny's Play (Re-Union)" from Kamen Rider Kiva. When Azalea reveals her new outfit and starts fighting Team JADE, listen to "Supernova" from Kamen Rider Kiva as well. When Azalea goes for her finishing move, the music that plays is "Wake Up" from the soundtrack of Kamen Rider Kiva. I loved that show and the music was great, so check it out if you want. Don't hate on all the use of good music from a fun series.**

 **Azalea's new permanent Huntress outfit was inspired by a number of things, so I'm proud of what the art that shows it off looks like. If you wanna check it out, go to my Tumblr, sullivantwissarcana, and look at my RWBY Original Characters pages.**

 **For the battle with Team JADE vs Azalea, I used Rooster Teeth's Red Vs Blue (specifically, the Season 8 episode "This One Goes To 11") for inspiration for some moments such as the smashing punch and the clothesline. I would have added more from it, but I wanted to be more original. Otherwise, Jet would have taken more hits like from RvB.**

 **I'm SO excited to hear your thoughts on this chapter, so make sure to leave a review. And with this chapter ended, I'm going to be psyched for Volume 6 of RWBY when it comes out next weekend. There's going to be a lot to work with during and after that season as well. Until then, the next time I get writing for Sideline, we'll be seeing the next fight between Fragment Hunter and a team they've met before. Just who, you'll have to wait and see.**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out! Thank you, everyone!**


	42. Friendly Competition: SLVR vs PRDT

**Hi, everyone! WaterDragonMaverick here with my newest chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". I hope that you enjoyed the time between chapters since I completed the first match of the Vytal Festival. I LOVED writing up everything involving Azalea in the previous chapter because she's finally gotten all of her character arc finished. She's no longer a shy and timid girl, but a bold and confident warrior! With her battle against Team JADE as a victory for Team FCSA, it's time to move onto some more friendly matches between the rest of Fragment Hunter and their opponents.**

 **RWBY Volume 6 is already off to a great start as well in my opinion. Especially with the Grimm in the first episode. I might be showing off more Grimm ideas I have for my story in the future, so be sure to check it out when things take the turn we didn't really see coming back in Volume 3.**

 **Things are about to get wild!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own in this story are my own Original Characters**

 **Be sure to leave a review if you enjoyed this chapter.**

* * *

After Team FCSA's victory against Team JADE, Fragment Hunter was enjoying more of their day until the next matches began. Several fans that watched the battle earlier tried to get photographs of Azalea in her new leather outfit and armor, which the Cow Faunus happily complied to as she and her friends all posed for them. While everyone spent their time at different parts of the fairgrounds, Pinkie was zooming all around the place as she spoke with Slate. "Oh man, you were awesome against that Duke guy," Pinkie said. "You couldn't shoot him, but you still managed to take him out on your own! That was awesome!"

"Yeah, it was, Pinkie," Slate remarked as he paid for a drink and watched his little sister's boundless energy.

"Too bad Mom and Dad had to head off to Mirabelle already. But I think they still saw the match," Pinkie mentioned. "I wonder how they feel about you and Azalea at the end of the fight?"

"That was a thing that happened in the heat of the moment," Slate quickly countered with a blush on his face. "Azalea wouldn't usually do that sort of thing."

"Still, she was super crazy awesome against those jerk bullies," Pinkie stated. "That last move was amazing! How did she make the crater into that shape? I should find her and ask her about it," she exclaimed before rushing off. But before she could even get 4 feet away from Slate, she ended up crashing face-first into something. Pulling herself free, Pinkie saw that she ended up running into Azalea's chest as she and Ivy were passing by. "Wow... They're nice," Pinkie commented as she looked at Azalea.

"They really are," Slate agreed. "Did I say that out loud?"

"Yes, you did," Ivy replied with a smile as Azalea blushed at what Slate said. "At least you know where she gets her great figure from," she added as she crossed her arms under her chest. "Moving on, I'm still surprised that you got that jacket from Bianca. It makes you look so different from when you were younger," Ivy said to Azalea. "Makes me remember of when I was a teenager before I met your father. Here, look at how different I was back then," she said as she pulled out her Scroll and showed the teenagers a picture of herself.

Slate, Azalea, and Pinkie were all surprised at how Ivy was wearing a dark dress, wore purple lipstick, and had several streaks of teal in the left side of her hair. "Wow. Why haven't I seen this before," Azalea asked as she looked at how her mother seemed to resemble an elegant witch with that attire in the picture.

"Hmm... Not exactly something I share with everyone," Ivy remarked with a chuckle. "Like how you keep that little 'Batterfy' in your room back home."

Upon hearing her mother mention one of her stuffed animals, Azalea blushed more and turned back to the Quartz siblings before they could laugh. "I was 2 and didn't know the difference between a colorful bat plushy and a butterfly."

"You've loved that thing for over 15 years," Ivy commented. "I wouldn't be surprised if you kept it for your own kids in the future."

"How about we go to the arena again? I want to catch some more battles," Slate said as he placed his hand on Azalea's shoulder to try and calm her down. Agreeing to the suggestion, the four headed off to meet up with the rest of Fragment Hunter for the next match.

* * *

In the commentator's booth in Amity Colosseum, Port and Oobleck were talking about the previous matches. "What a bout between Mistral's Team JADE and Beacon's Team FCSA! I'm certain to say that nobody was expecting that outcome," Port said as clips from the battle played for viewers watching the tournament at home.

"I must agree, Peter. While Team JADE certainly held the advantage with Duke Cobalt's Trajectory Manipulation Semblance, Azalea Calla Holstein was the star fighter of the match as she easily handled three opponents at once," Doctor Oobleck remarked. "The final attack she performed was definitely one for the history books with how she used Dust in her weapons and armor to enhance her final kick."

"It was a wonderfully executed attack from Azalea that ended the battle by triple knockout," Port exclaimed with his usual boisterous tone. "As for the next match, we'll be watching Team PRDT of Vacuo's Shade Academy face off against Beacon Academy's own Team SLVR!" As he announced the team names, the eight competitors walked into the middle of the arena and waved to the audience. "Percival Ivory and his teammates are in their second year at Shade, so they have more experience than Team SLVR, but that doesn't exactly mean that our fighters from Beacon don't have skills of their own."

"We'll just have to see which team is capable of handling the other in this round of the Vytal Festival Tournament," Oobleck stated.

* * *

Team SLVR and Team PRDT all stood in the middle of the arena as the audience cheered for the upcoming battle. "This is going to be a fun match," Silver remarked as he and the girls prepared their weapons. "Good luck to you guys," the Wolf Faunus told his opponents.

"Same to you," Percival replied as he walked up to Silver. "May the best team win the fight," he said as he held out his hand. Silver took it and they shook hands before Percival started to turn it into his signature 'secret handshake'. Adjusting their grip, Silver and Percival bumped fists before they tapped their hands from top to bottom, then they fist bumped again before ending the handshake with a high five.

Having watched the interaction, Port and Oobleck commented on the two leaders. "And in contrast to the hostile behavior between the previous members of Fragment Hunter and their opponents, Team SLVR and Team PRDT display a friendly disposition before the match even starts," Oobleck told everyone.

"It's always great to see young students develop friendly rivalries with each other," Port stated. "They're excellent for instilling fervor and a drive to become better."

Soon, the biomes were chosen and the two teams saw what their battlefield was going to be for the match. The selected stages were revealed to be a geyser field for Team SLVR while Team PRDT's side of the arena became a desert, complete with an artificial sun for intense light and heat. Fortunately, the spectators in the stands were given sunglasses so that they could watch the action. "Sweet! It's just like the wastelands back home," Percival and Ebony exclaimed as they high-fived each other.

"Don't get too cocky," Rua shouted at them. "We wouldn't be fighters if we couldn't handle these sorts of environments."

"That's a good point," Twilight Roseus said as she adjusted her glasses. "We still need to take every detail and possibility into account."

"Yeah, yeah. We get it, Twi," Jennifer Dawn said as she prepared her weapon and switched it into its pistol form. "Let's just get ready to fight."

As the eight teenagers readied themselves, Professor Port started to count down. "3, 2, 1, begin!" At the signal, the girls of Team PRDT all opened fire on Team SLVR. However, Rua was able to use her shield to block every single shot before she charged at Jennifer. Bashing the blonde into the Desert Biome with her shield, Rua switched her weapon into arm blades and kept attacking. When she did, Lapis and Vixen joined in by using their Dust to create a burning gust of wind that kicked up a sandstorm. "And it looks like Team SLVR is off to a great start," Port announced.

As the sand was sent all around the battlefield, Ebony Rain closed her eyes in order to prevent any obscuring her vision and to concentrate. Listening for any of Team SLVR, she soon heard the sound of Silver's chainsaw as he pounced toward her and went for a slash. Blocking the attack with her shield, Ebony deflected the chainsaw and kicked Silver away before she fired a shot at Rua. Hearing the gunfire, the brawler of Team SLVR raised her shield to defend herself before she got hit. The force of the shot knocked her back a little, but Rua stood strong before Percival used his natural claws to slash at Rua like a wild animal. Getting caught off guard, Rua had to keep blocking Percival's swipes before she teleported away to the geyser field to escape the Faunus' aggressive battle style. "We got her to back off for now," Percival exclaimed to his team. "Keep it up with the rest!"

"On it," Twilight replied as she made her way over to one of the cliffs in the Desert Biome and placed her hand on the rocks. When she removed her hand, a glyph appeared on the surface and the stones began to move. Throwing her hand forward, Twilight sent shards of rocks at Vixen and Silver, which forced the latter to use his chainsaw's whip form to defend the two. Placing her other hand on the rocky cliff, a second glyph appeared and the stones began to turn into a small golem that Twilight controlled like a puppet.

* * *

Everyone watching the battle was amazed at what they were seeing and wondered what Twilight was doing until Professor Port began to explain everything. "Looks like Miss Roseus is using her Semblance. With the glyphs she creates, she can freely manipulate the object she places them on. This allows her to deconstruct and reconstruct any matter she wants, but can only use two glyphs at a time."

"Hmm... with that description, it sounds very similar to alchemy," Oobleck explained. "Let's see how Team SLVR can handle this."

The members of Fragment Hunter were all talking with each other about how their friends could deal with such a powerful ability. "They're in for a fight now," Layla remarked. "It's like battling a Geist when it possesses rocks."

"Didn't they say that they beat one before finding their chess pieces," Sunset questioned as she remembered a conversation with Team SLVR earlier in the school year.

"Come on, Team SLVR! You can do it," Bianca shouted in encouragement with Pinkie joining her. "Fight! Fight! Fight!"

* * *

Silver, Lapis, and Vixen all had to run away from the golem as Twilight controlled the artificial monster's movements. Soon, they all reached the Geyser Biome and Twilight commanded the golem to smash the three. Just before it could, Rua teleported in and blocked the large stone fist with her shield. The force of the clash cracked the stone floor of the biome and even made some of the geysers start to erupt. Smirking at what happened, Rua teleported to Twilight and threw her toward the geyser field for Silver to catch her with his chain. As Twilight was smashed down onto the ground, she had to dodge Lapis' trident as the latter went for an impaling strike. Just as Twilight was about to control the stone golem again, a geyser erupted and broke her creation into pieces. "No," Twilight shouted in shock as she watched the stones fall apart. As she had to dodge and shoot Team SLVR, she soon saw another geyser that was about to blow and placed a glyph over the vent. "I can control more than just metal and rocks," she stated to Team SLVR as the water and steam shot out from the geyser. With the glyph affecting the vent, the water began to freeze and a storm of icicles began to fall on the students from Beacon.

"Better try again," Vixen taunted as she used the Fire Dust in her fans to melt Twilight's attack. With the ice not bothering her, Vixen went in for an attack and Twilight had to defend herself with her weapons. As the two fought, Vixen's superior martial arts talent gave her the advantage and she managed to knock Twilight into the air. "Rua, deal with her now," Vixen exclaimed. Hearing her teammate, Rua teleported in and struck Twilight with her shield to knock the girl out of the Geyser Biome. Hitting the forcefield that protected the audience, Twilight saw that she was knocked out of bounds.

"And Twilight Roseus is eliminated by ring-out," Port told the audience. Twilight only pouted and fixed her glasses as she left the battlefield. "It's now 4 against 3 in this battle with Team SLVR taking the lead."

"Not for long," Jennifer Dawn said as she changed her weapon's form into a whip sword. With the new mode, Jenny swung the whip of blades and hit all the members of Team SLVR while they regrouped with each other. After she did that, Percival used his Semblance to create bone spike missiles and fired them at the Beacon fighters. As soon as the spikes went flying, they nailed each member of Team SLVR and sent them in different directions. "Nice one, Percy," Jennifer exclaimed as she and Ebony went to battle Silver and Rua, ignoring the protests about the nickname from the clawed Faunus.

After getting over the use of the nickname Azalea gave him, Percival looked at Lapis and Vixen as he stood ready to fight. Knowing that Percival was able to pressure Rua into backing off, the girls knew that they had to play it smart if they wanted to stay in the battle. Nodding to each other, Vixen took an Ice Dust crystal from Lapis and used her Semblance to create an illusion of a blizzard to surround their opponent. As the snow blew around him, Percival actually felt the cold and realized that Vixen was able to make her illusions solid based on what kind of Dust she used with her Semblance. Feeling that the two girls were giving him a challenge, Percival roared as he charged through the snow and ice to attack.

* * *

After getting hit by Percival's spikes, Silver and Rua recovered enough to see that Jennifer and Ebony had returned to face them at the center of the arena while the others kept battling in the Geyser Biome. "Time to wake up, Rua," Silver told his teammate as they stared down the girls from Vacuo. Gripping his chainsaw, Silver ran toward Ebony to slash at the Bat Faunus while Rua threw her shield at Jennifer. The girls managed to block the attacks with their own shield and whip respectively, then went for a counterattack. Ebony knocked her opponent away and aimed her shield's rifle at Silver before pulling the trigger. Firing a round of Wind Dust at him, Ebony sent Silver flying into the air. At the same time, Jenny used her whip sword to grab Rua and throw her into Silver. However, Silver had the same idea and used his chainsaw's whip form to throw Ebony into Jennifer. As the fighters crashed into each other, they soon heard Percival's roaring. "What the heck," Silver questioned as the four turned to see what was happening.

Soon, Lapis was thrown toward the center of the battlefield and Doctor Oobleck made an announcement. "And with Percival's onslaught, Vixen Kosaku has been eliminated from the battle," he said. "This brings the battle to even numbers again."

"Not if I can help it," Lapis stated as she took a deep breath and looked at Team PRDT as the three members regrouped. Seeing what Lapis was doing, Rua grabbed Silver and they teleported behind one of the rocky cliffs in the Desert Biome. Screaming at the top of her lungs, Lapis unleashed her Semblance to try and defeat Team PRDT before they had a chance to attack again. As the silvery-blue soundwaves went toward the Vacuo team, Ebony was screaming in complete agony before she was sent flying into a cliff in the Desert Biome. When she hit the rocks, they began to shatter from Lapis' Semblance and fall on Ebony. Jennifer and Percival tried to power through the sonic scream, resisting enough to either reach Ebony or attack Lapis. As Lapis continued to scream, her throat felt like it was burning and her voice was getting weaker. Seeing that she wasn't keeping up her attack, Percival used his own Semblance to fire a bone spike at her to knock her out of the battle.

Falling over from the damage she took, Lapis checked the Aura level readouts to see that she and Ebony were defeated, but Jennifer only needed to be hit one more time before getting taken out of the battle herself. However, Percival was still holding in there with a good level of 62% and could still battle. "With a powerful use of her Semblance, Lapis Ondine has eliminated Ebony Rain from the fight at the cost of being taken out herself," Professor Port stated for the audience as Doctor Oobleck checked his hearing.

"What," Oobleck questioned as he looked at Port.

"You're messing with me, aren't you," Port asked as he didn't believe that Lapis' scream reached the commentator's booth.

"A little, yes," Oobleck admitted as he turned away.

As Percival turned to see Jennifer Dawn helping Ebony out from the rocks, Silver used his weapon to grab one and Rua teleported in to kick the stone at Jenny. The impact from the rock lowered Jenny's Aura enough to knock her out of the battle. As Percival watched this and the remaining two members of Team SLVR stared him down, Percival only cracked his knuckles and extended his claws before using his Semblance to create spikes on his legs. "Time for a little payback," Percival said as he looked at the two.

* * *

"He looks pissed," Cereza remarked as she watched the battle with the rest of Fragment Hunter.

"Yeah. He is," Sunset agreed as she could sense his emotions.

"Well, he's still our friend. We don't have to worry about anything going out of control," Layla said.

"Yeah. Percy's just going to give it his all against Silver and Rua," Azalea stated.

"Still, he's already taken out both Vixen and Lapis. Plus, he's pressured Rua into backing off from a fight earlier," Celadon mentioned. "I wouldn't be surprised if he was able to win this whole thing."

Terracotta only watched the battle as he looked at Percival Ivory. Ever since he saw him spending time with Fragment Hunter, he couldn't get the thought of this student being his old teammate's son out of his head. "Hmm... What's your next move," Terracotta muttered to himself about Percival as he watched the battle.

"Come on, Silver! You can do this," Bianca exclaimed as she shouted to Silver from the stands.

* * *

Taking the battle to the center of the arena again, Silver and Rua had to dodge or block each of Percival's spikes as he sent them flying. After defending themselves, Rua began to teleport all around Percival and hit him from every angle she could. However, Percival either managed to block the attacks or powered through them before he punched Rua hard enough to send her flying into the Geyser Biome. When she landed next to a vent, Rua noticed it was about to erupt and placed her shield on top of it. As the water shot up, Rua was sent flying into the air and was high enough for her plan. Throwing her shield at Percival, the weapon transformed into a giant shuriken and it was about to strike at Percival as he charged toward Silver. Seeing the weapon coming his way, Percival only kicked at the weapon and sent it flying back to Rua. As she was shocked by what he did, Rua was nailed in the face by her own weapon and sent flying out of the battlefield. "Oh, and Rua Amaranth has been eliminated by low Aura and ring-out! To be fair, none of us were expecting that kind of counterattack," Port stated.

"Indeed. And now, we're down to only the two leaders of the teams," Oobleck added. "Silver Wuruhi and Percival Ivory. Both of these young Faunus are capable fighters and leaders in their own ways. So, let's see how they handle a one-on-one duel with each other."

As Rua got up and joined the other girls, the six began to watch the rest of the battle together. Percival and Silver both growled before they rushed each other and attacked. As Percival slashed at Silver's chest with his claws, the Wolf Faunus' shirt was ripped and his jacket was falling off. As he backed away, Silver used his chainsaw to attack Percival and deal similar damage to him by using the chain whip form and revving the engine. The chain vibrated and cut away at Percival, ripping his clothes and lowering his Aura level further. Using the chain to grab at Percival's leg, Silver managed to grab him and pull him forward. Countering, Percival began to move the spikes on his leg and the chainsaw began to fly out of Silver's hands. With Silver disarmed, the two Faunus stared each other down and wordlessly removed their ruined shirts. With the shredded clothes discarded and their jackets removed, Percival belted out a mighty roar at Silver as the latter adjusted his stance for a hand-to-hand duel.

"Why did they strip," Rua questioned as she watched the battle.

"Don't question it," Vixen, Lapis, Twilight, Ebony, and Jenny all said at the same time as they stared at the boys with big smiles on their faces. Rua only rolled her eyes at what the other five girls said as they were checking out Silver and Percival. As they looked on, Rua noticed the scar on Silver's shoulder and realized it must have been from when he escaped the White Fang attack that killed his parents. As for the rest of the audience watching, Silver's tattoo of the original White Fang's logo was on full display. Before anyone could say something about it, the two boys attacked each other.

Silver attacked with punches, kicks with his bladed shoes, and even using his Semblance to transform between his different forms to slash and bite at Percival. Meanwhile, Percival was using his claws, spikes, and even a few headbutts to try and beat down Silver as the battle raged on. "This fight has gone feral," announced Port as the boys kept trading blows. "Both contestants are channeling their inner warrior and are duking it out with nothing but their bare hands!"

"Um, Mister Wuruhi still has his shoes with hidden knives in them," Oobleck corrected.

"You know what I mean, Barty," Port exclaimed with excitement as they kept watching the match.

As Percival and Silver traded attack after attack, the Aura readout showed that Percival was at 40% while Silver had fallen to 37%. Both Faunus were smiling as they kept fighting, punching and kicking each other, using their claws, and doing whatever they could to win the match. Soon, their Auras had fallen to around the same level and were just above the elimination limit. "One last hit should do it for this fight, Percy," Silver remarked as he panted.

"You're right," Percival agreed as he smirked at Silver. "Let's do this." Nodding to each other, Silver and Percival ran forward and drew their fists back for one final punch on each other. As they charged and clashed, they decked each other in the face and the force pushed each other back with a shockwave that sent them flying to their sides of the arena. Picking themselves up, the two Faunus warriors looked at the readout to see who won their final clash.

Looking at the screen, everyone saw that the team that won the round was Team PRDT as Percival's Aura was higher than Silver by a 1% difference. "This match was a close call! This winner after a hard-fought back and forth battle is Percival Ivory and Team PRDT of Shade Academy," Port declared.

"A tough break for Team SLVR, but they have definitely proven themselves to be capable fighters in this fight," Oobleck commented.

As the crowd cheered at the results of the battle, Percival and Silver approached each other. "Good one, dude," Percival said.

"You deserved that win," Silver stated as he and Percival performed the same handshake from earlier.

* * *

At the fairgrounds, Team SLVR was with the rest of Fragment Hunter as they talked about the battle. "That was a tough battle," Rua said as she ate some popcorn. "Seriously, that Percival is on a different level than us."

"Perhaps for you, but I'm sure that any of us can handle him," Cereza commented as she unwrapped a lollipop to enjoy.

As she said this, Percival walked up to the group. "Maybe you can, but we'll just have to see about that in the next rounds," the boy remarked. "How are you guys feeling after our fight," he asked Team SLVR.

"You took out each of us on your own," Silver said as he slouched. "Admittedly, a little upset about it."

"I know what will perk you right up," Bianca told Silver as she snuck up behind him. Turning his head toward hers, she kissed Silver deeply before letting go. "You earned that after such a great battle, Silver," she said before lowering her voice to a whisper. "And maybe something else as well," she added before gently blowing into Silver's ear. Hearing what Bianca said, Silver raised his arms in victory with a giant grin on his face as the Dove Faunus kissed him on the cheek a few times.

The others watched as Bianca kept kissing Silver, Slate and Azalea blushed as they looked at each other when they turned away from the public display of affection. As it continued, Percival was the first to speak up. "Lucky devil," he stated with Vinyl nodding in agreement.

"Not the first time, either," Sunset mentioned as she remembered the afterparty for Bianca's concert. When memory returned to her, Sunset grabbed her drink and downed it all without stopping for a breath. "Anyways," Sunset exclaimed to change the topic. "The only ones who haven't gone yet are us," she said as she gestured to Team SAFR. "I'm sure that we'll be in for a good fight, too."

"Hopefully none of our clothes will get ruined like the last two battles," Celadon remarked as she looked at Azalea, Silver, and Percival. As she did, she had a small blush as she looked at the boys, remembering the end of the fight. "So, have you chosen who's going into the next round?"

"Definitely gotta go with Azalea after her win against Team JADE," Cereza said with a smile. "But we let her choose who she's going with into the second round."

"I decided that Layla needed to help me out," Azalea told everyone.

"Nice. I'm going with Ebony into the next fight," Percival said. "Maybe we'll end up fighting each other?"

"Who knows? We'll have to see who we're battling next before we talk about the next round," Rebecca stated as she and Team SAFR looked at Amity Colosseum.

* * *

 **And with this chapter, we're only one match away from ending Fragment Hunter's involvement in the first round. I'm betting that some of you wanted to see Team SLVR win, right? Well, I thought that wouldn't be as much fun, so I decided to mix it up and have characters from Shade Academy take the win. Plus, I'm still following canon, so none of my OCs are going to make it to the finals. If they did, you can totally expect Azalea and Percival to go into the last round at least. For now, we still have Team SAFR's match to deal with and it's going to be not only a physical confrontation, but one of wits and brains as well.**

 **For the battle in this chapter, I say that most of the fight between the two teams would have the song "Crash and Burn" featured in Death Battle's episode, Crash Bandicoot VS Spyro The Dragon. However, I also suggest the song "Ride On Right Time" from Kamen Rider OOO as that is one of the main themes I've chosen for Percival Ivory.**

 **I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and if you did, make sure to leave a review of what you thought about it. The next one will take a bit because I still need to figure out the way to describe some of the battle styles of the next opponents.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	43. Love and War: SAFR vs GLOW

**Hello, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here to welcome you to the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story" and the end of the first round of the Vytal Festival Tournament. With two battles dealt with for my Original Characters in Fragment Hunter, the only team remaining to fight in the tournament is Team SAFR. In this chapter, we'll see if they can take on their opponents or not. So, get ready for a battle of strength, skill, and strategy.**

 **Are You Ready!?**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own in this story are my own Original Characters**

* * *

As the day went on, the members of Fragment Hunter enjoyed their time between matches and waited for when Team SAFR had to head off to Amity Colosseum for their battle. As they did, Sunset was walking around on her own while her pet gecko was on her head. Snacking on some taiyaki that Azalea suggested she try, the flame-haired girl soon saw somebody that she recognized at one of the booths. Seeing a raccoon tail and hair that was colored similarly to it, Sunset approached the Faunus and silently asked Phoenix to use his tongue to get their attention. When it happened, the Raccoon Faunus freaked out a little at the sudden feeling and turned to see Sunset Blaze. "Oh, hello there," Smoke said as he calmed down.

"Hey, Smoke. How's everything going," Sunset asked as she looked at the disguised phantom thief. "Catch any good fights earlier?"

"Oh yeah, Azalea's battle was just amazing and she makes that new outfit look _good_ ," Smoke Shadow said. "Too bad she's already taken if that passionate display after her victory wasn't obvious. I wonder if she's willing to see other people as well? I could show her a good time."

"Oh, was our kiss not something you enjoyed," Sunset remarked with a smirk on her face.

"Depends," Smoke said as he leaned closer to Sunset. "Did you like it?" As Smoke asked this, Sunset stood her ground with her smirk staying on her face as her cheeks started to turn pink. As Smoke inched closer, Phoenix jumped onto the Raccoon Faunus' face to get him to back off. "AAAAHH! That thing's scaring the crap out of me," Smoke told Sunset as the gecko climbed up her leg and onto her shoulder.

"Oh, Phoenix just seems to be protecting me," Sunset remarked. "But I should still get ready for my match."

"Well, I hope that you win," Smoke told her. "I'll be cheering for you, Spitfire," he said as he passed by her and kissed her on the cheek as he left.

Blushing at how Smoke kept flirting with her, Sunset shook her head to focus. "Calm down, Sunset," she said to herself. "He's a thief who probably does this with every girl he's interested in. He just said he'd want to be with Azalea. I wouldn't be surprised if he did it to rich girls and other women who are involved with his heists." As she tried to reason with herself and get focused for Team SAFR's match, she saw a flower on the ground and realized that Smoke must have placed it in her hair like back at the Beacon Dance. "Guess I can't help but fall for him a little," she said as she picked up the rose. "It's not love, though. More like infatuation at the moment."

"What about infatuation," asked Aurora Celeste as she and Nocturne approached Sunset.

"Nothing," Sunset quickly answered and burned the flower in her hands with her jacket. After she did, she stuffed her face with the last of her taiyaki and looked back at her teachers. After swallowing her snack, she spoke to the Celeste Sisters again. "So, the tournament's going well," Sunset commented.

"Indeed, it is," Aurora agreed. "Reminds me of when Team NOCT first attended it. We were able to advance all the way to the finals thanks to Noir's leadership, Orchid's speed and sharpshooting, my talents with my Semblance and swordplay, and Terracotta's strength."

"And eventually, Terra managed to win it for you guys," Sunset remarked as she remembered the opening ceremony.

"That's correct," Nocturne stated. "However, my sister would have been the one in the finals if she hadn't gotten sick the night before. Apparently, she ate too much cake back then."

"I didn't eat too much," Aurora argued with her sister. "I got food poisoning. There's a big difference."

"It doesn't sound like much of a difference, my elder sister," Nocturne retorted. "In fact, because I had to keep an eye on you, we couldn't watch Terracotta ascertain victory for Beacon Academy in person."

"Oh, don't get started on that," Aurora said as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Besides, you kept whining that you could see me battle in the finals like you wanted."

"Because you promised me," Nocturne whined like a little kid.

As the argument went on, Sunset and Phoenix laughed at how her dignified and regal-looking mentors were acting like the siblings they were. The three women snapped out of it when an announcement sounded off. "Would Team SAFR please report to the battlefield? Your match is coming up soon," Professor Port said.

"Well, I better get my stuff and meet my team," Sunset told the sisters.

"May fortune favor in this battle," Nocturne said as she waved to Sunset.

"Good luck, Sunset," Aurora voiced as Sunset headed for Amity Colosseum.

* * *

In the stands of Amity Colosseum, Fragment Hunter saw several fans of Team SAFR as a number of them had pictures of the girls that were decorated with hearts and some spectators even had their own versions of Vinyl's amethyst-colored sunglasses. As Azalea sat down next to Slate and Pinkie, she looked down at her chest to see Phoenix resting comfortably there since Sunset gave him to her while Team SAFR was fighting. Up in the commentator's booth, Port and Oobleck were busy at their jobs as they spoke to the audience. "Percival Ivory was certainly a handful for Team SLVR during their battle earlier, but Beacon's not out of the competition just yet," Port stated.

"That's correct, Peter. We're now going to watch the third and final team that makes up the group known as 'Fragment Hunter' give it their all in this match," Oobleck agreed.

"The lovely ladies of Team SAFR, led by Sunset Blaze, are sure to show what they're made of," Port told everyone as images of Team SAFR were shown on the screens. "But I don't think that they could be fully prepared for their opponents today."

"Quite right," Oobleck remarked before elaborating. "Team GLOW from Atlas is a skilled quartet that has completed their missions with record precision and skill according to General James Ironwood," he stated as images of the aforementioned team appeared on the screen for viewers at home. "These four are only in their second year, but they have accomplished many things that could easily consider them candidates for the Atlesian Military's Special Operatives unit if they chose."

"Personally, I think that these fine soldiers of battle should have the freedom to choose what to do after they graduate," Port voiced. "Helping those in need and defeating Grimm, fighting for the safety and wellbeing of their Kingdom, or even just enjoying the world as they explore what they haven't seen for themselves. That's the life of a Huntsman in my book!"

"Pretty sure that's one of the most common stories you can find in a store's bargin bin," Oobleck playfully retorted.

"Ho ho! That was a snappy comeback, Doctor," Port said with a chuckle. "Let's get ready for what fields our two teams will be facing off in," he said as everyone's attention changed to the battlefield.

* * *

Team SAFR and Team GLOW were standing in the middle of the arena as the biomes for the match were being selected. As the field was randomized, the two teams began to converse with each other. "So, should we get the obvious question out of the way," Rebecca asked as Team SAFR looked at Oren Maxwell's mechanical left arm.

"I lost it when I was younger," Maxwell bluntly stated as he held up his hand. "Train incident around Argus. Luckily for me, my parents were decorated members of the Atlas Military like Garnet's, so they were able to help me get it replaced thanks to General Ironwood."

"Neat," Vinyl remarked.

"I bet they'll enjoy watching this battle at home, then," Sunset mused.

"Same with my boyfriend back in Atlas," Raduga mentioned. "We've been together for nearly a year now."

"You know, a good idea for a present would be a pair of earrings in the same design as your emblem," Celadon voiced. "That way, he'll always have a piece of you with him." Raduga thought the idea over and nodded in agreement.

"I look forward to seeing how well all of you can face off against us," Garnet said to Team SAFR as he tried to get everyone back on topic.

After Team GLOW's biome was selected, a large field of ice rose up and the two teams commented on it. "Sweet! I've already got the advantage," exclaimed Raduga as he threw a fist into the air.

"Calm down," Lucy Diamond told her teammate. "We still need to remain focused on the battle. They'll probably have an area they can work with as well," she reminded as Team SAFR's side of the arena revealed itself. Rising behind them, a ruined urban environment similar to destroyed settlements such as Mountain Glenn emerged and the girls nodded in agreement over the battlefield. "See what I mean," Lucy said.

"However, we can still use it to our advantage as well," Garnet stated to his team. "When the match begins, we'll go with Attack Pattern Delta-12."

"Roger," Maxwell, Lucy, and Raduga all replied.

Team SAFR all had slightly worried looks on their faces as they remembered that their opponents were essentially a military unit with more field experience than they had. However, they were still confident enough that they could face off against them as Oobleck counted down. "3, 2, 1, start," the green-haired teacher exclaimed and the fight began.

Immediately, Raduga headed for the Ice Biome and activated the skates of his boots, which allowed him to maneuver on the frozen terrain with greater ease. At the same time, Lucy held up her hand to show that she wore some sort of contraption on her wrists. Grabbing onto Garnet, she fired a cable toward the closest building of the Urban Biome and the two were pulled to the rooftop. As Team SAFR saw the team separating themselves, Oren Maxwell charged forward and transformed his arm into its hammer mode. Swinging the weaponized robotic limb, Maxwell dealt powerful strikes to the girls and separated them from each other. Retreating to avoid getting hit by the hammer, Team SAFR split up and entered the two sides of the battlefield. Garnet watched from the rooftop as Lucy used her cables to reach a different building and began to follow Celadon. "Excellent work, team," Garnet said to himself as he transformed his gun into its sniper rifle mode and began to wait.

* * *

In the Ice Biome, Vinyl managed to balance herself and searched for Raduga White as she began skating. As she looked around, she heard the sound of skates against ice and turned to see Raduga heading right for her with a grin on his face. Speeding toward Vinyl, Raduga landed a punch against Vinyl's cheek before he turned around and began to kick her several times. Knocking Vinyl away, Raduga laughed as he started to continue his assault. Striking at her with his bladed feet, Vinyl had to use her hard light disks as shields to defend herself as the attacks kept pushing her along the ice. Thinking of an idea, Vinyl used her Semblance to blast Raduga as he came in for another attack and directly hit his chest. Getting knocked away, Raduga smirked as he started to skate around as Vinyl stood on one of her disks and started to shoot at him. As he dodged the energy projectiles, his movements just got faster and faster until he created images of himself that started to skate behind him. Vinyl lifted her sunglasses to check if she was seeing things before Port and Oobleck spoke. "And Raduga White has started to use his own Semblance to counter Miss Aurum's," Port stated.

"Mister White can increase his speed and even produce tangible afterimages that can act on their own so long as they keep moving in some way," Oobleck explained. "With this, he can keep attacking opponents or distract them long enough to figure out a new strategy."

"A Semblance with an appropriate name as well," Port added. "This is Raduga White's Speed Rush!"

Seeing the two clones skate around her, Vinyl attempted to make sure Raduga or his clones couldn't touch her as she used her platform as a hoverboard. Moving the disk toward the center of the arena, Vinyl looked back to see that the lead Raduga White used the Ice Dust in his skates to create a layer of ice on the battlefield so that his mobility wasn't hindered one bit. Surprised at the skill he had with Ice Dust, Vinyl watched as icicles began to form around Raduga and fire at her. Summoning a second disk, Vinyl blocked the attack before she heard a gun fire and nail her in the foot. As she got shot, the disk she was riding on faded and she fell to the ground. Rolling onto her back, Vinyl recovered and did a handspring that got her back onto her feet. Thankfully, her Aura protected her foot from getting injured, so she was able to keep fighting as one of Raduga's clones grabbed him and they began to spin around like a pair of figure skaters. The Raduga copies began to strike at Vinyl and she soon had to counter by dropping to the ground and kick at the one that held up the second. As soon as she did, the copy disappeared and the one being held had to retract his skates to land properly. As he did, the second clone rushed Vinyl to only be shot by Sunset. " _Got your back, Vinyl_ ," Sunset told her teammate telepathically as she looked at the two from a rooftop she was on.

Suddenly, a bullet flew nearby Sunset's head and grazed her hair. Looking at the direction it came from, Sunset realized it was Garnet Pepper and the two had to reposition themselves as so they wouldn't get spotted by each other. Switching his weapon's current form from Sniper Rifle to Machine Gun, Garnet Pepper entered one of the buildings just as he dodged throwing stars and gemstones to see Maxwell and Lucy waiting for him. Using hand signals, he directed his team to go with another plan of attack. Understanding the new tactics, the two nodded as they separated to handle Team SAFR. "Come get some, SAFR," Maxwell shouted as he threw his left arm forward and the fist flew toward Vinyl as she dodged one of Raduga's kicks.

"Ow! The back of my head," Vinyl exclaimed as she was hit by the metal hand. Maxwell ran toward Vinyl and caught his fist while it was still in the air so that he could reattach it to his arm. As he did, it changed into its hammer form and he swung the weapon into Vinyl's back to send her flying. As Vinyl grunted from the impact, a cloud of smoke formed in front of her and caught the girl. Looking down, Vinyl smiled as Rebecca used her Semblance to manipulate the smoke she created and made it solid. Just as Rebecca and Vinyl headed off for another part of the Urban Biome, Lucy Diamond pulled out a pair of knives and attached them to her cables. Launching the knives toward the two girls, Lucy managed to essentially slingshot herself at them. Just as Vinyl and Rebecca dodged, Lucy began to kick at them and try to slash at the two with her knives as she held them in her hands. Blocking her blades with their own, Rebecca and Vinyl managed to get Lucy's guard open and hit her with their Semblances. Pushing her back, they gave each other a thumbs up before they went to regroup with Celadon and Sunset. Just as they started to move, a wall of ice began to form in front of them as Garnet fired at them using Dust from the Ice Biome in his weapon.

Using her Semblance, Rebecca created a smokescreen that obscured the vision of Garnet so that she and Vinyl could escape. However, Garnet used his hearing to compensate for the lack of vision and heard their footsteps to his right. Firing in that direction, more ice formed and nearly froze the girls solid as they quickly dodged. "Time for something new," Rebecca said to herself as she used her Semblance once more. Directing her smoke toward Garnet, Rebecca manipulated it so that it transformed from a gas to a liquid and ink splattered all over Garnet's face. As the Dog Faunus spit ink out of his mouth, Rebecca and Vinyl managed to reunite with their teammates. "These guys are trouble," Rebecca told the others.

"You're telling me. Lucy's abilities are quite remarkable with how she maneuvers through the battlefield and has been fighting me," Celadon stated.

"This team is a trained military unit with all kinds of strategies. How are we going to deal with them," Rebecca asked.

Thinking it over and realizing what Rebecca said, Sunset came up with an idea. "Strategy, huh? They're not the only ones who can come up with battle plans," Sunset remarked. "This whole thing can be like a video game. One side has more experience and training, but we still beat them if we think creatively. And while they need to use code phrases and hand signals, they don't have our psychic link." Hearing what Sunset was stated, Team SAFR's hopes grew as they prepared to fight back.

* * *

In the stands, the rest of Fragment Hunter was talking about the match. "That Raduga's pretty skilled with his feet. He reminds me of a mix between that Mercury guy and Weiss with how he moves," Vixen said.

"And Maxwell's robot arm is a very powerful weapon with how he's able to deal with the girls," Layla stated.

Terracotta spoke up about how he thought about Team GLOW. "Those kids from Atlas definitely have battlefield training thanks to being second-year students, but that's not going to help them out entirely."

"You're right, Terracotta. No plan survives first contact with the enemy," Aurora said as she looked at where Team SAFR was planning their next move. "Let's hope that Sunset and the others can handle themselves."

"Sunset's smart, strong, and skilled," Azalea stated as she watched the battle with Phoenix in her jacket. "She can think of something because she literally has all of us on her side."

"She's right about that," Slate agreed as he looked Azalea in the eye. The two smiled at each other while Pinkie tried to reach over and gently pet Phoenix as the gecko made noises from Azalea's outfit. "I know Sunset will be able to do something about Team GLOW."

On the other side of the stands, Smoke Shadow and his allies were keeping an eye on both teams. "Come on, Blaze. I know that you're tougher than this," Smoke whispered to himself.

* * *

After getting a plan together, Team SAFR separated and headed off to different areas of the Urban Biome. Team GLOW saw this and decided to change their tactics once again when Garnet gave new instructions. "Pursuit Plan Gold-4," the Dog Faunus ordered his team and they nodded in agreement. Maxwell struck the nearest structure to break off a piece of the building and Lucy caught it in her hands before passing it to Raduga. Speeding after the closest member of Team SAFR, Raduga threw the piece of concrete toward Celadon. Dodging it, Celadon was surprised to see the object levitating in the air before it came back toward her. Nailing her in the stomach, the concrete pulled her back to Maxwell and Lucy as it returned to the building it was broken off from.

"Just what was that," Celadon questioned as she picked herself off the ground and fixed her hair.

"Well, it looks as though Lucy Dimond has used her Semblance to great effect," Oobleck explained. "She has the ability to restore objects to their previous form. This allows her to put broken environments back together and if she stops it halfway through, she can create makeshift walls out of destroyed items."

"That power is just crazy, Miss Diamond," Port voiced in excitement over seeing the Semblance in action.

"This is one reason why we're so skilled in our missions," Lucy stated to Celadon. "I can help repair broken homes for people after Grimm attacks and bandit raids. Plus, it has combat capabilities as well."

"A lovely power that's fitting for a girl such as yourself," Celadon remarked as she held out her spear. "Allow me to showcase my own!" Spinning her weapon around, Celadon created numerous gemstones and lined them up like billiards before thrusting her spear forward and launching one more gem into the group. As soon as the spear and gems came into contact with each other, the projectiles shot around the area and struck at the two members of Team GLOW. Taking a barrage of hits from different angles, Lucy was soon pushed back and had to use her Semblance to create a wall to defend herself. Maxwell, on the other hand, pushed through the damage and went to go attack Celadon with his fists. She countered by focusing her Semblance onto her own hand and punched at Maxwell's fist as he swung it. The impact created a shockwave that pushed both fighters back and Celadon retreated to the Ice Biome after.

As Celadon moved, Sunset used her Semblance to search for Garnet. " _Okay, then. I've been using this power a lot during training, so let's see how it works in an actual battle_ ," Sunset thought to herself as she closed her eyes and concentrated on Garnet. When she opened them, they became a garnet red color instead of their usual teal and she could see what Garnet saw. As she saw herself in the sights of a scope, Sunset pointed her hand forward and launched a fireball at Garnet. Getting hit by the flames, Garnet had to retreat and was soon caught by Rebecca's Semblance. Using the smoke to grab onto him, Rebecca sent the cloud flying at shot Garnet out of the battlefield. "Yes," Sunset exclaimed as Team SAFR managed to get the advantage.

"Outstanding! Just like that, Team SAFR has taken Garnet Pepper out of the fight by ring-out," Port announced.

"This battle has been one of strategy so far, but now it seems that Team GLOW has lost their leader and a number of their plans," Oobleck added. "Let's see what happens next."

* * *

The audience was amazed at Team SAFR's moves through their battle and how they took out Garnet. "Haha! That's it! Way to go," Silver exclaimed as he cheered on his friends.

"Keep it up," Bianca called out to Team SAFR.

"Go girls, go," shouted Azalea as she pumped a fist into the air.

Aurora, Nocturne, and Terracotta all looked at each other with smiles on their faces as Sunset was able to coordinate her team to defeat one of Team GLOW's members. "Nice one, Sunset," Aurora remarked as she turned back to watch the battlefield.

Smoke Shadow and his gang all clapped as they watched Team SAFR fight on. "Let's see what else you girls can do," Smoke said as the thieves watched the battle.

* * *

At the Ice Biome, Celadon reached the frozen battlefield and started to use her spear's whip form in order to move around the area as Vinyl continued to fight against Raduga. While Vinyl was able to use her hard light weapons to great effect in defending herself, Raduga was in his element as he sped across the ice and used his Semblance to create more clones. Seeing a chance to do something, Celadon used her Semblance to break off a large chunk of ice that was above the two fighters. When the gemstone projectiles hit the ice, it fell in front of Raduga and tripped him up. Sliding across the ice on his side, Vinyl and Celadon teamed up to use their Semblances for their 'Fantasia' combo attack. The explosion from the gems and energy blasts sent Raduga flying back into the center of the arena and he was barely still in the fight. "Oh, man," Raduga said as he saw his Aura was only a few points away from being low enough and getting eliminated. "I could use some help here, guys," he called out to Lucy and Maxwell.

"We're coming, buddy," Maxwell said as he and Lucy made their way over to their teammate. As the three members of Team GLOW got together, they saw Celadon and Vinyl making their way over to them while Sunset and Rebecca casually strolled into view. "I got to hand it to you, SAFR. You're all good," Maxwell told the girls.

"Thank you," Celadon replied. "We're like a handful of gems. Beautiful, strong, and durable. You won't take us down easily."

"We can still try," Raduga exclaimed as he sped past Celadon and Vinyl. Using his Ice Dust and Semblance, Raduga created several clones that joined with him to create a storm of blades that was sent flying at Team SAFR. Just as several of the frozen blades hit the girls, Sunset used the Fire Dust in her jacket and melted the rest of the ice that flew at them in one swift motion. After she did, she teleported behind Maxwell using her Semblance to use Rua's and started to punch him with burning fists. Raduga and Lucy tried to stop Sunset from hurting their teammate as he was getting close to being eliminated. As they did, Rebecca threw her shuriken at them and Lucy had to use her cables to defend herself. However, Rebecca's shuriken were loaded with Ice Dust and the cables Lucy used were beginning to freeze over.

Knocking Maxwell into Lucy and Raduga, the three members of Team GLOW were almost defeated as their Aura levels were barely above the elimination mark. "Let's end this," Sunset called out as she held out her hands and the floor underneath Team GLOW began to light up. At the same time, Vinyl and Celadon aimed their respective Semblances at the students from Atlas while Rebecca's solidified smokescreen grabbed them to keep them still. The Atlesian Huntsmen-in-training all looked at the situation they were in with wide eyes before they braced for the blast with dignity. With a snap of Sunset's fingers and Vinyl blasting Celadon's gems, a massive explosion enveloped the center of the battlefield and covered the area in smoke. When the air cleared, Team GLOW was completely defeated as their Aura levels were all at 0% and they groaned on the floor. Seeing that they won without any of them being eliminated themselves like the last few battles, Sunset laughed in sheer joy and jumped in the air! "WE DID IT, GIRLS!"

Team SAFR celebrated their victory as Vinyl and Sunset started to dance for the crowd. Celadon and Rebecca smiled and watched as they helped Garnet get his teammates up onto their feet. "An outstanding victory with an explosive finish for Team SAFR," Professor Port exclaimed. "They managed to defeat Team GLOW and advance to the next round."

"And the crowd is loving the outcome of that nail-biting battle," Oobleck commented as the cameras focused on the audience, showing Fragment Hunter cheering loudly and several fans that were wearing purple sunglasses. As Vinyl and Sunset danced, Smoke Shadow watched and smiled to himself before he left the stands.

* * *

After the battle ended, Fragment Hunter went back to Beacon Academy where Aurora and Ivy were making a large meal to celebrate the battles the teenagers fought in. Alongside them, Team GLOW and Team PRDT joined as every single one of the teenagers spoke about the fights. "That move where you shot your Semblance like you were playing pool wasn't something I was expecting," Lucy said to Celadon. "Where did you come up with that?"

"I just play pool at times," Celadon stated as she fixed her hair. "It's a fun game that requires precision and focus."

"My dad actually loves billiards himself," Slate said. "No matter where we moved, he'd want to bring the pool table he got when I was 6 with us. I loved playing games with him and I ended up getting good at trick shots."

"So, basically like you already do," Rua remarked and Slate shrugged in response.

As Pinkie was her regular energetic self and started asking the two teams of transfer students about all sorts of things, everyone saw Terracotta bring out giant pots of curry and rice. As the teenagers started to enjoy their meal, their conversations changed to all sorts of things while the adults brought out more food. "When we reached our destination, we had to deal with a group of Manticores that would have attacked a nearby train," Garnet told everyone as he recounted one of Team GLOW's missions. "Luckily Maxwell's strength and Raduga's speed make quick work of them while Lucy and I provided support."

The entire meal went by quickly as Team PRDT shared stories of their own about missions and battles. Soon, everyone headed off to their dorms for the night and only a few members of Fragment Hunter and their friends were walking around. Azalea and Sunset were walking alongside Bianca as the girls talked about a few things that happened earlier. "After that battle, I'm going to partner up with Vinyl when we go into the doubles round," Sunset said as Phoenix crawled onto her shoulder.

"The two of you are going to be hard to beat," Bianca remarked before she turned to Azalea. "So, you've been acting a little different around Slate since your win, Lea. You thinking of something," the Dove Faunus asked with a playful smirk on her face. Azalea blushed in response and squirmed a little as she looked away. "Oh my god, you are!"

"Please don't talk about it," Azalea asked. "It's already awkward for me."

Sunset placed her hand on Azalea's shoulder and looked the girl in the eye. "Azalea, listen. You know what you're capable of. You've changed a lot from when I first met you. This sort of thing shouldn't be as hard as battling Team JADE. If you want to do what you want, do it," Sunset said.

Azalea nodded and pulled out her Scroll send a message while Bianca pulled out something. "Here," Bianca said as she gave Azalea tube of lipstick. Opening it, Azalea saw they shimmering golden color and looked back at Bianca. "In case you want to give him a gold experience," she stated with a wink and a quick kiss on Azalea's cheek. As Azalea stammered in response to the innuendo, Bianca walked off to find Silver.

"Well... at least she's trying to help," Sunset remarked with uncertainty. "Just do what you feel like," she told Azalea before she noticed a familiar tail pass by. "I'll see you in the morning after you wake up from your overnight coma," Sunset joked as she mentioned Azalea's sleeping habits. Heading to where she saw what she did, Sunset followed the tail until she met up with Smoke Shadow in front of a dorm that was empty since the third-year team occupying it was on an away mission. "What's up, Ringtail," Sunset asked as she looked at the Raccoon Faunus.

"I just wanted to personally congratulate you on that victory of yours earlier," Smoke replied. "I hope you don't mind."

Sunset only smirked in response. "You know what would happen if you were exposed by me right now? I'm sure my friends would love to take you to prison after everything you've been doing," she told Smoke.

"Yes, but that's just them. What about you," Smoke stated as he slinked over to Sunset and put his arm around her waist. "What do you want to do with me?" Sunset and Smoke slyly smiled at each other before Sunset grabbed Smoke's face and kissed him. As they enjoyed their passionate kiss, Smoke used his Semblance to bring the two into the dorm room for some privacy. "I think that answers my question," Smoke remarked.

"That was just because you always do it to me," Sunset told him as she removed her jacket. "I figured it was time for a little payback," she said as she pushed Smoke against a wall and kept kissing him. As she did, Smoke pulled Sunset closer to him and move his hands across her back. As soon as they separated for some air, Sunset looked at Smoke's hands to see he was holding something she recognized. "Why am I not surprised that you would be able to take my bra off without me noticing," Sunset asked the thief.

"Probably because you'd think I've had moments like this with other girls. And you would be right," Smoke replied as he held Sunset's red bra in his hands. "Good color and size, by the way."

"I might not be as big as Azalea or Yang, but I'm still a larger size than Blake and I like it," Sunset told Smoke as she removed her boots, belt, and leggings.

"I'm liking it myself, too," Smoke agreed as he tossed the article of clothing away and the two began to kiss more, eventually falling onto the closest bed as they were in each other's embrace.

* * *

In Team FCSA's dorm room, Layla and Cereza got a message from Azalea and looked over to Slate. Smiling to themselves, they approached Pinkie and spoke to her. "Pinkie, let's go to the library," Layla cheerfully said. "We could play some games, make a fort out of books, or even watch videos."

"What do you say, little one," Cereza asked.

Immediately, Pinkie rushed to the door and was waiting for the girls. "Let's go! I wanna see who can make the biggest book fort," the girl exclaimed.

Slate silently smiled at the antics of his sister and watched the three girls leave before Azalea entered the room. "Hey, Azalea. How's everything going," Slate greeted as the Cow Faunus walked over to him.

"Slate... There's something I want to say to you," Azalea said as she removed her armor and placed it aside. Taking a deep breath, Azalea tried to calm herself down so that she could talk. "I think that we should... do more," she told the boy as she took off her boots and jacket.

Slate scratched his head as he thought about what Azalea meant. "I'm not sure if I'm following," he remarked as Azalea approached him. He could see how much she was blushing and the look on her face was one of embarrassment until she worked up the nerve to kiss him deeply. After separating, Slate realized what she meant. "Oh... _OOOOHH..._ I j-just thought y-y-you... Are you even ready for something like this?"

Azalea nodded and removed her fuchsia tank top to reveal her pink bra underneath. "I am," she nervously replied with a blush that matched the color of her undergarment. Slate's face soon matched his girlfriend's before he shook his head and stood in front of her. Placing a hand on her shoulder and giving her a kiss on the forehead, Slate's comforting touch calmed Azalea down and they smiled at each other. Embracing each other, the two fighters passed through the night in each other's arms.

* * *

 **And done! I bet that none of you were expecting that ending for a while. But I thought that after what happened after the win against Team JADE and the fact that the characters know how Azalea's parents are, things were bound to get...** _ **intimate**_ **at some point for Azalea and Slate. Plus, Sunset and Smoke have pretty much been flirting with each other since the misunderstanding had been cleared up. So along with Bianca and Silver... *insert appropriate soundtrack for the night* HAHAHAHA! XD**

 **Back to the other things, we now have all three visiting teams and all of Fragment Hunter's fights dealt with! We also have the characters that will go onto the next round; Sunset and Vinyl, Ebony and Percival, Azalea and Layla. Percival and the girls are in for some tougher battles when they get there.**

 **Speaking of battles, for the first part of Team SAFR vs Team GLOW, listen to the Boss Battle Music from "Steven Universe: Save The Light" while Team SAFR's comeback has "Giant Step" from Kamen Rider Fourze playing.**

 **I'm sure that with this chapter, you'll want to know the common idea I gave Team GLOW. When I was coming up with them, I chose to go with music by "The Beatles" for their characters. Garnet Pepper's uniform and name is from "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", Lucy Diamond's name comes from "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" if it wasn't obvious (but her Semblance is a reference to the Jojo's Bizarre Adventure power "Crazy Diamond"), Oren Maxwell's arm is a reference to "Maxwell's Silver Hammer", and Raduga White is from "White Album" (which was more subtle as his outfit and use of Ice Dust was inspired by another Jojo's Bizarre Adventure ability of the same name).**

 **I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter and had a nice time between chapters. On November 12** **th** **, the legendary Stan Lee of Marvel Comics passed away at 95 years old. He was such an icon and he shall be missed like Monty Oum. Let's honor the both of them by creating heroes and stories that we can be proud of. Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	44. Afterglow

**Hello, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here with the newest chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, Team SAFR battled against Team GLOW and all of Fragment Hunter has been through the first round of the Vytal Festival Tournament. Team matches are finished, so now we'll have a little break between battles before the Doubles Round begins. We also had a few...** _ **intimate**_ **moments between a few characters, so we'll see what they're doing this morning. After that, we'll have some scenes of the characters at the fairgrounds where they talk about some of the previous battles from this fic and the canon matches.**

 **It's a beautiful day.**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own the Original Characters used in this fanfiction.**

* * *

Morning came to Beacon Academy and the sun began to shine through the windows of Team FCSA's dorm room. Beginning to stir awake, Slate Quartz managed to notice that his pillow seemed different than usual. As he opened his eyes, he also felt somebody holding onto him and heard slow breathing. Looking where it was coming from, Slate saw that Azalea was holding him close to her chest as they shared Slate's bed. Realizing the lack of clothing they had, Slate soon remembered the previous night and put everything together. "That wasn't a dream," he said as he looked at Azalea's peaceful sleeping face. "So glad it wasn't one." The serene smile that Azalea had was something that Slate thought was infectious as he smiled at her and brushed a lock of hair out from in front of Azalea's eye. As he did, Azalea began to wake up and saw Slate had his hand on her cheek. "Good morning, Princess. You feeling okay?"

Remembering last night, Azalea smiled with pink cheeks as she nodded in reply. "Yeah. I'm feeling better after everything," she said as she sat up and the bedsheet clung to her body. "I'm just... a little sore." Slate kissed Azalea's forehead and cheek as he stood up to get their clothes. "That night was amazing," Azalea said as she looked at Slate's back. "Um... can you get me something clean from the top drawer," she asked.

"It was," Slate agreed as he put his pants on and searched through the drawer to give Azalea a pair of pink pajamas. "Here you go." As Azalea slowly put the clothing on, Slate remembered a few things about their time together last night. "You know... I didn't really expect _that_ ," he said and Azalea looked at herself as she immediately knew what her partner meant.

"Yeah. My mom says that every female of her side of my family has that. I think it's genetic," Azalea said as she put on her bottoms, but winced in pain a little. As she did, Slate walked over and placed a hand on her bare shoulder. Azalea smiled and placed her hand on Slate's as they sat next to each other. Slate soon began to kiss at each of the freckles on Azalea's cheeks and made her laugh. "Didn't you do that enough earlier," she giggled.

"I might have lost count after everything," Slate playfully retorted before placing a hand on his throat.

Azalea saw this and smiled with half-closed eyes before she spoke again. "Thirsty, Slate?"

"I could go for something to drink," Slate replied as he and Azalea looked at each other and kissed once more.

* * *

In another dorm room, a different pair was waking after a passionate night of their own as Smoke Shadow was lying on his side and started tracing random patterns on Sunset Blaze's scarred back. At first, he was curious as to how she got the scars before he mused that it was an occupational hazard of being a Huntress-in-training. As he was lost in his thoughts, Sunset woke up to feel Smoke's finger against her skin. "You know, I thought that you were the type to leave at the first chance you got," Sunset joked as she glanced at the Raccoon Faunus with half-lidded eyes.

"Not all the time," Smoke answered as he kept looking at Sunset's bare back after he moved her hair out of the way. As he kept looking at the scars, he decided to get an answer about them. "Where did these scars come from," the Raccoon Faunus asked as he traced over them with his fingers. Sunset sighed before she told him all about what she was like before attending Beacon. "A learning experience if I had to say," Smoke said.

"Yeah. I've already changed so much from that day," Sunset agreed as she rested her chin on a pillow. "It's just that these scars are an annoyance at times. Reminding me of what I was like before I met Azalea, Vinyl, and everyone else."

"Ever think of getting a tattoo to cover them," Smoke suggested as he got out of the bed and grabbed his clothes. Sunset started to think about and was soon lost in thought over the multiple possibilities of what kind of tattoo to get on her back. As she pondered the choices, Smoke Shadow grabbed her chin and kissed her on the lips. "I'll see you another time, lover," he told her before using his Semblance to phase through the wall and jump down to the ground.

While Sunset kept the bedsheet against her body, she playfully smirked at him as she looked out the window to see he landed safely. However, her expression changed to one of annoyance and anger when Smoke revealed he had something in his hands. " _That's my bra, you thieving raccoon! Give it back_ ," she exclaimed using her Semblance to telepathically yell at him.

" _I said that I would see you another time, Firefly. Consider this a treasure that you're welcome to steal back from me when you get the chance_ ," Smoke replied. " _Just like when we first met._ "

Watching Smoke Shadow blow a kiss to her as she glared at him from the window, Sunset's expression softened as she realized she was beginning to like the dynamic she had with Smoke Shadow. "That tanuki is going to be somebody I don't want to get rid of," she said as she collected the rest of her clothes and headed off to meet up with the rest of Fragment Hunter. "I sure could go for something to eat," she said as she didn't bother to fix her hair when she left the room.

* * *

Fully dressed again and reaching the mess hall where Ivy and Aurora were cooking breakfast for them, the members of Fragment Hunter saw the disheveled looks that some of them had. "I take it last night went well," Cereza asked as she looked at Slate and Azalea. The two only chuckled in embarrassment as they sat close to each other. Silver and Bianca smiled as they sat next to Vinyl, who only gave a thumbs-up to the members of Team FCSA.

Celadon noticed Sunset's messy hair and was the first to speak to her about it. "Would you like to tell us about who you accompanied last night? Or would you rather not kiss and tell," she asked the flame-haired girl.

"Let's go with the second one," Sunset answered before she started to enjoy a plate of pancakes.

"I think you all deserve a break after those battles yesterday," Terracotta remarked as he approached the teenagers. "None of you have battles in the doubles round just yet. That gives you all some time to enjoy the fairgrounds." The group cheered about the news just as Ivy and Aurora brought out the rest of the food. "It looks great, honey," Terracotta said to his wife as she gave him a plate of waffles and a kiss on the cheek.

While the rest of the meal went on, they talked about several things like Sunset possibly getting herself a tattoo or what to check out at the fairgrounds. As everyone began to leave, the only people left were Azalea and her parents as they enjoyed the last helpings of food. Before Azalea could take another bite of some fruit, her mother said something to her. "How much did you and Slate enjoy your night together," Ivy asked and made Azalea drop her food in embarrassment. "You two were a bit closer than usual _and_ I saw the subtle signs like how he brushed your hair away," she explained. "It's just like the morning after your father and I did the same."

Azalea only blushed and downed her drink before speaking. "I don't wanna say," she said before she saw her father's face. "He didn't do anything bad! It's just... well... this is awkward."

"Very much so," Terracotta agreed before he placed his hand on his daughter's shoulder as she continued to have a drink. "I'm glad to see my daughter is a woman and is becoming a Huntress now. But you're still my baby girl," he said. "I just want to make sure you're safe."

"Speaking of, did you use protection," Ivy asked with a slightly teasing tone, prompting Azalea to splash her as the younger Faunus did a spit take. As the liquid dripped off of her, Ivy took a napkin and began to dry herself. "Looks like I'm going to have to apply more makeup," she said as she looked at Azalea with annoyance at her daughter's reaction.

"Sorry," Azalea apologized as she put her glass down.

"Let's just focus on the main thing here," Terracotta stated as he got his wife and daughter to focus. "I'm always going to look out for you, Azalea. I trust you to make your own choices, but I still want you to come to me whenever you're having troubles. Okay?"

"Yes, Daddy," Azalea said as she hugged her father. "I'm going to meet up with the others at the fairgrounds! Bye," she said as she rushed outside. Terracotta and Ivy only smiled at each other as they watched her head off.

* * *

Fragment Hunter soon made their way to the fairgrounds to see everyone was out and about. The three teams were joined by Bianca, Pinkie, Ventus, and Azalea's dogs as they enjoyed the autumn day. "Okay, everyone! Let's see what the fairgrounds still has to offer," Celadon exclaimed as she, Lapis, Vixen, and Cereza all went off to check out clothing stalls.

"I wanna see how many stuffed animals I can win," shouted Pinkie as she ran off.

"Pinkie, get back here," Slate yelled as he chased after his sister with Sunset and Rua joining him.

Bianca went to explore with Silver, Vinyl, and Layla, which left Azalea with her uncle and dogs keeping her company. "It's been a while since we've spent quality time together, right," Ventus asked his niece, who nodded. "So, let's check out some stalls," he said as the two walked off with the dogs following them. As the uncle and niece enjoyed their time, Ventus began to tell stories about some of his adventures. "Then, I managed to lure the Velgeroc into a canyon and after some uncomfortable maneuvers between some rocks, I made it crash into a cliff. The impact made more rocks fall onto it and pin it down long enough to take it out with a few Dust rounds to the eyes." Azalea was captivated by the story of how her uncle dealt with the eagle-like Grimm and continued listening.

"You know, you should be a teacher. I bet those stories would be much more entertaining than Professor Port's," she told the Falcon Faunus.

"Ehh... I don't know. You know how I tend to get when I'm cooped up for too long, right," Ventus replied.

"It's a classroom, Uncle Ven. Not a closet," Azalea reminded, knowing that her uncle was claustrophobic like Bianca Coloratura. "Besides, I'm sure that the other students would love you if you taught them."

"Taught who what," said a voice that Azalea recognized. Turning around to see who it was, Ven and Azalea saw Team CFVY of Beacon Academy. "Hello, Azalea," said Velvet Scarlatina.

"Hi, Velvet. I was just saying that my uncle would be a good teacher here at Beacon," Azalea explained.

After Ventus introduced himself to Team CFVY, Coco Adel lowered her sunglasses as she looked at Azalea's new attire. "Love the outfit, Freckles," Coco said. "But it feels like something's missing." Azalea thought about it for herself and felt like her new look _was_ missing something to make it complete. "Ah, well. I'm sure you can figure something out later," Coco remarked with a wave of her hand.

"Yeah, maybe. I'll see you later," Azalea said as she, Ventus, and her dogs all went off. As they continued walking around, Ventus soon left to do some shopping of his own before Vinyl and Sunset showed up. "Hey, girls," Azalea greeted as the three met up with each other. As they went around together, the three soon met up with Team RWBY.

"Yo! Yang," called Vinyl.

"Vinyl! Azalea," Yang said as she approached the three girls of Fragment Hunter with her team following beside her. "Those fights you were in were great! You really showed it those guys," she remarked. "I still remember when you attended Signal with me, Vi. Those weapons were pretty complicated, but they work like a charm."

"I know! So cool," Ruby agreed with stars in her eyes as she looked at Vinyl's Rhythm Scratch.

Weiss only put a hand to her face as she smiled at the younger girl's behavior. "Ruby, control yourself. We've known them since the start of the year," the heiress told Team RWBY's leader.

"But seriously, I can't believe that you were able to beat all of those bullies like that, Lea," Yang said as she turned to the Cow Faunus. "It must have felt good."

"Like you wouldn't believe," Azalea stated as she crossed her arms with satisfaction.

"They deserved that kind of beatdown," Blake voiced as she knew what most of Team JADE's members were like since they arrived.

"Tell me about it," Sunset said. "Anyway, your win was just as amazing," she mentioned. "That final punch was great! You all work so well together."

"Thank you," Weiss said as all of Team RWBY smiled at Sunset's words. The seven girls talked for a while as the day went on.

* * *

At a booth that hosted a few games, Slate focused before he threw a baseball at the right angle in order to bounce it around and strike three stacks of bottles down. As his sister cheered, the man running the booth gave him a stuffed pony that Pinkie immediately grabbed and hugged tightly. Turning around, they saw Team JNPR nearby and Slate called out to them. "Hey, guys! You here to win a prize, too," the gunslinger asked.

"Look at it," Pinkie exclaimed as she held up her new toy for the four to see. "It's so cute!"

Nora gasped as she saw the toy and turned to Ren. "Ren! We have to get one, too! Either that or a giant teddy bear," she said to her childhood friend before pushing him toward the booth for a chance to win a prize for themselves.

As Pinkie went on to talk to Pyrrha about how much of a fan she was of the warrior's battles, Jaune sighed before he spoke to Slate. "Sisters. They can be a handful at times."

"Yup," Slate agreed. "But they'll still have your back at times. I know I can trust Pinkie."

"I still can't believe that she's basically a second Nora. One's already a lot to handle," Jaune remarked.

"Well, I've been living with Pinkie for about 13 years, so I've been able to get used to her energy," Slate stated. "It's an issue for anyone else, but I can deal with her at times as long as I can keep an eye on her."

Soon, the two males talked about their families and all sorts of mishaps their sisters got them in as well as their battle against Team BRNZ from Shade Academy. As their conversation went on, Nora soon interrupted them as she held a giant teddy bear in her arms. "You won't believe how I got this one," Nora said as she and Ren met up with the rest of their team. Slate, Jaune, and Pyrrha all looked over to see that a high striker game was completely destroyed as pieces of the bell lay scattered all around the grass. As they looked at Nora with disapproving stares, she rubbed the back of her head before Team GLOW arrived and Lucy Diamond used her Semblance to repair the game.

"There we go. Good as new. Now for my turn," Maxwell said as he prepared his mechanical arm to play the game himself. The person running the game only gulped as they saw the silver-colored hammer replace Maxwell's left hand.

* * *

Soon, Azalea and Sunset were checking out new clothes at a few stalls before they saw some people they recognized. The two girls saw Penny Polendina making sure a large hat she was wearing didn't fly away in the wind as she spent time with Ciel Soleil. "Penny! Over here," Azalea called out as she and Sunset walked away from the stall they were at.

Penny turned to see the girls and smiled as she saw them. "Azalea! Sunset! Salutations," the girl from Atlas greeted. "A pleasure to meet you again."

"Same here," Sunset said as she looked at Penny and Ciel. "Looks like you and your friend are enjoying yourselves," she remarked before introducing herself to the latter. "Hi, I'm-"

"Sunset Blaze. 17 years old. Previously attended Garrison Academy. Leader of Team SAFR," Ciel interrupted before she did a similar statement about Azalea. "Azalea Calla Holstein. Daughter and only child of Terracotta Gaia and Ivy Dahlia Holstein. Hails from Mirabelle. Member of Team FCSA."

Sunset and Azalea looked at each other, not even using the former's Semblance to know what they were thinking about Ciel before they changed topics. "So, did you see our fights," Azalea asked.

"Yes. You were really great out there, Azalea," Penny said. "Team JADE didn't stand a chance. I don't know why you haven't dealt with them before. I would've been glad to help you if I wasn't being escorted around," she mentioned as she looked at Ciel, who was checking her watch.

"I believe that it's time we head off for our next destination, Penny," Ciel stated as she gestured to her watch. As she did, Sunset and Azalea looked at Ciel to see that she was distracted for a moment. Turning to see where she was looking, Sunset smirked as she realized that it was only Sun Wukong passing by.

"Sorry, girls. But I need to get going," Penny told her friends. "I wish that we could hang out more."

"Too bad you can't just ask to transfer to Beacon for good. Maybe if you convince your dad, he'd let you stay with a few others," Azalea said.

Penny smiled at the suggestion, but kept silent about it as she thought of something. "I'll see you around, Azalea. You too, Sunset," she said as she waved to the girls and left with Ciel.

"Later, Penny," Sunset said as the four separated. After the girls from Atlas were out of view, Sunset spoke to Azalea. "You know, I wouldn't be surprised if she managed to come here after the tournament was over. She'd be a great friend to hang out with."

"Yeah. I'd welcome her into my family if she needed a place to stay between semesters," Azalea voiced before changing the subject. "By the way, is there any reason why you aren't wearing a bra today?"

Sunset looked at Azalea in surprise before composing herself and speaking up. "Let's just say that the guy I spent last night with wanted to have a trophy to remember what happened," Sunset answered.

"He stole it, didn't he," Azalea asked with a blank expression.

"Yup," Sunset admitted as she slumped over for a brief moment. "How could you tell?"

"Working on a farm tends to be a lot of physical work and some clothes will just get in the way. Me, my mom, and several of the female farmhands change so that we don't have any issues when doing stuff," Azalea told her friend.

Sunset nodded as she understood the explanation. "Alright then. Either way, the next I see him, I'm going to get it back," she stated. "You know, I would expect Slate to be able to wear one of _your_ bras like a hat or earmuffs."

"I know that my mom's are big enough for that," Azalea joked. "You could even use them as a slingshot," she remarked and got a laugh out of Sunset.

* * *

The day went on and Fragment Hunter enjoyed watching a few matches between all their fun at the fairgrounds. When it was either heading up to Amity Colosseum to watch from the stands or just watching the fights from televisions, the group watched as the tournament continued. Soon, the day came to a close and Fragment Hunter started returning to their dorm rooms. "Well, you four have a big day tomorrow," Silver said as he looked at Azalea, Layla, Sunset, and Vinyl.

"If either of you goes against Team PRDT, kick their butts for me," Rua asked.

"If it comes to that," Sunset replied.

"I'm not going down without a fight," Azalea said as she punched the palm of her hand. "Not after what I've been able to do." Slate smiled at Azalea's bolder attitude when it came to the tournament and stepped closer to his girlfriend to put his arm around her shoulders.

As they got comfortable around each other, Pinkie jumped in and gave the two a big hug as she dragged Sunset into it. "I just know you'll be amazing," she said to Azalea and Sunset. "I can't wait!"

"Calm down there, Pinkie," Sunset said with a smile as she booped the younger girl on the nose. "Let's just get some sleep so that we can fight in the doubles round tomorrow." Pinkie nodded and Sunset ruffled the girl's pink hair so that it looked like a mess of curls, which Pinkie easily shook back into its normal appearance.

As the group headed off, Slate spoke to Azalea while they stayed behind. "You and Sunset are really acting like sisters to Pinkie. She loves you girls," Slate remarked.

"Aww, thank you," Azalea replied as she sweetly kissed Slate's scarred cheek. "I like her a lot, too. I'm so glad you and your family are moving to live at Mirabelle. If you did that before we attended Beacon, I'm sure that I wouldn't have been so scared and shy. We might have even gotten together sooner," she said as she looked down at the floor and played with her hair.

"I'm happy that we're together now," Slate told her as he placed his hat on her head.

Azalea looked at Slate flirtatiously as she adjusted his hat on her head and kissed him on the lips. "Well, I'm sure that you'll love what I have in store for you tonight," she stated and dragged him away. Slate said nothing as he wore a big grin on his face.

As the two lovers walked off, they didn't notice Terracotta and Ivy watching from a distance. "They remind me of us when we were younger," Ivy said as she placed her hand against her husband's muscular chest. "In love, trusting each other so much, and full of desires."

"Who said that isn't us now," Terracotta remarked as he pulled his wife closer to him and made her laugh as he lifted her into his arms.

As the Faunus kissed each other, somebody approached the two. "You two _really_ sure you want to do that in public," a raspy male voice asked and caught their attention. Terracotta and Ivy recognized the man as they turned to face him. Seeing the black-haired man drink from a flask he carried, he spoke to them once again. "Hey, Terra."

"Qrow Branwen. It's been a while," Terracotta said to the Huntsman as he put his wife back onto the ground.

"It has," Qrow agreed as he pocketed his flask.

"You here for the Vytal Festival," Ivy asked. "Your nieces are doing well."

"I have... other business here with Ozpin, but I've been watching some of the fights when I can," Qrow answered as he searched for the right words. "I _did_ manage to see how your little calf did against those kids from Mistral," he remarked as he referred to the match between FCSA and JADE. "A bit of a mess on both sides, but she managed to handle herself. Wasn't expecting that shy little wallflower to suck face with her teammate, though."

Ivy and Terracotta just smirked at the memory of Azalea's emotions getting the better of her and making out with Slate on live television for all of Remnant to see. "She's changed a lot after coming here," Ivy stated.

Qrow nodded in agreement about people changing for the better after coming to Beacon before he got back to speaking with the two Faunus. "In any case, I'm sticking around to spend time with Oz and my nieces, so I might see you guys around. Same with anybody like Aurora and Nocturne," Qrow said before he left.

As the three went their own ways, Terracotta spoke to Ivy. "No matter how many times I see him lately, he always tends to be cryptic," he remarked. "Reminds me a lot of Professor Ozpin."

"You think they're involved with something," Ivy asked.

"If they are, I'm sure that it's all for the good of Remnant. Ozpin isn't the type of person to falter easily," Terracotta said. "It would take something _big_ for him to lose hope."

* * *

 **Okay! I'm finished with the breather chapter and by the next one, we'll be starting the doubles round of the Vytal Festival Tournament! I bet that several of you are excited to see how my characters will do against their next opponents. Well, let's just say that things are still following canon and that some fights will be intense.**

 **I hope you all enjoyed the character interactions in this chapter as well as the little romantic moments as well. Until the next time, please leave a review if you liked the chapter and I'll see you all when I update another one of my fics.**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	45. The Second Round

**Hello, readers! WaterDargonMaverick returning to give you the newest chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". After getting through the first round, Fragment Hunter has enjoyed a day off to recharge and prepare for the doubles round of the Vytal Festival Tournament. Now let's see just who is going up against who and what the outcome will be for them.**

 **Round 2, begin!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own the Original Characters that I use in this fic.**

 **Please leave a review if you enjoyed this chapter. I'd love to read what you have to say about my writing.**

* * *

The Vytal Festival was continuing in Vale and everyone was getting excited for the second round of the tournament. With team matches finished, the fights were now going to consist of two selected members of the previous round's victors battling each other. While waiting for the next battle to start, Sunset Blaze walked around the fairgrounds for what felt like the 5th time while the tournament was going on. Soon, she saw a casually-dressed Smoke Shadow pass by a stand and grab a magazine. Before she could stop him, Sunset saw the Raccoon Faunus pay for the item and walked off to read it somewhere. Following him, she saw him leaning up against a tree to read his acquisition. As he flipped through the pages, Sunset saw Bianca Coloratura was on the cover in an outfit she recognized from the photo shoot Fragment Hunter joined the Dove Faunus for. When he got to a certain page, Smoke saw that Sunset was standing right in front of him and he smirked. "Hey there, my burning love. Here to take back your treasure," he asked as he greeted the girl and referred to their previous night together.

"I'd appreciate it," Sunset remarked as she crossed her arms. Pulling the stolen bra out of his hoodie pocket and keeping it out of sight, Smoke handed it over to Sunset and the girl moved to behind the trees to put the undergarment on. "Don't look," she warned.

"I won't. You have my word," Smoke responded as he returned to his magazine. As Sunset quickly put her bra on, Smoke started to talk with her more. "I'd say something about what you _didn't_ choose to wear today, but I'm more curious about what you wore for this shot right here," he said as he looked at a photo of Sunset in a flamenco dress made of red and yellow fabric along with a black belt that had a flower adorning the top. Along with the dress, the picture showed that Sunset had a blue rose in her hair, put on gold-colored bracelets, and wore gold-colored heels to go with it. "Did you keep it? Because you look fabulous in this picture," he asked as Sunset came into view and adjusted her clothes.

"Hm, yeah. Bianca was nice enough to give a few of us some of the outfits she made for the shoot we were invited to. She gave Azalea quite a few things, including the new jacket she wears now," Sunset explained.

"And man, does she look _good_ in that outfit," Smoke remarked with a whistle as he pulled out his Scroll and brought up footage from the first round of the Vytal Festival. "I bet that Slate guy agrees with how they kissed like they did."

"I'd be lying if I said that I didn't want to kiss Azalea myself. Maybe even more than that," Sunset muttered to herself, but Smoke managed to hear her.

"So... you play both sides," Smoke asked as he looked at Sunset.

Sunset only rolled her eyes as she looked back at the Raccoon Faunus thief. "Oh please, pretty much all of my friends are attracted to Azalea to some extent. Especially after she showed off that new outfit," Sunset told Smoke. "Trust me. I've seen their dreams and they get... steamy."

"That's teenagers for you," Smoke remarked as he looked over at the fairgrounds.

Sunset glanced at Smoke and gave him a blank stare. "You're thinking of her right now, you tanuki," Sunset stated as she used her Semblance on him.

"Okay, caught red-handed so to speak," Smoke admitted. "As much as I'd like to know if she'd enjoy my company, I'm growing rather fond of you, Spitfire."

"Keep that up and I might have to do something about it," Sunset said as she smirked at the boy in front of her. "Well, I should go get a seat in the stands. The next fight is about to begin."

"I think I'll check it out from somewhere I can eat at," Smoke told Sunset before he took her hand and kissed it. "I'll see you around, Miss Sunset Blaze."

"What happened the nicknames I was starting to enjoy," Sunset asked with a sly look on her face as Smoke released her hand. The two only chuckled at each other before they went their separate ways.

* * *

In the battlefield of Amity Colosseum, Azalea and Layla were getting ready for their next battle. "So, who do you think we're going up against," Azalea asked her friend and teammate as she stretched.

"I'm not sure," Layla responded as she looked at her gun, Djinn Desire. "But they should get here anytime now."

"Hey, girls," called out a familiar male's voice. Looking at where it came from, the girls from Team FCSA saw that their opponents for the second round were Ebony Rain and Percival Ivory. "Looks like we'll be battling each other," Percival said.

"Wouldn't be the first," Ebony remarked as she looked at Layla, remembering their training session with Slate and Jenny. "Let's see who wins this time now that Slate isn't going to be doing trick shots."

"Oh, Slate does more than just trick shots if you remember his fight against Duke," Azalea stated. "Plenty more," she added with a grin on her face.

While Layla saw Azalea's expression, she ignored what the girl might have been thinking and realized something that she shared with the others. "Hey, so which one of us is the odd one out," Layla asked.

"Excuse me," Ebony asked while she, Percival, and Azalea looked at the girl.

"I'm the only human, Azalea isn't from Vacuo, and Percy's the only guy. So, which of us is the real odd one out," Layla explained while the fields were being chosen for the match.

The others thought it over and were curious about it themselves. "It's a matter of perspective, really," Ebony said as she gave her opinion on the question. "Let's figure it out when we aren't trying to fight each other."

"Yeah, I want to see which of us can beat the other," Percival said as he warmed up by shadowboxing for a few seconds.

Azalea and Layla smiled at the potential that the match had as the fields were selected. Instead of each side having one biome, the second round had two different areas that each side could battle in. On Azalea and Layla's side, the Ocean and Forest Biomes from previous battles in the previous round emerged. As for Percival and Ebony, the Urban and Desert Biomes rose from the ground behind them and the members of Team PRDT high-fived each other as they got their homefield advantage once more. "You ever think that the randomized areas and matches aren't entirely random," Layla asked as she looked at the battlefield.

"Considering how we fought my old bullies in the first round, kind of," Azalea remarked before she turned her attention to Percival. "Hey, may the best pair win, Percy."

"Same here," Percival said as he approached Azalea and did his signature handshake with the first member of Fragment Hunter he befriended.

"Once again, Percival Ivory shows good sportsmanship by shaking hands with his opponent," Doctor Oobleck commented. "Now if both sides are ready, the match will be starting soon."

All four contestants prepared themselves as Professor Port counted down. "3, 2, 1, begin!" At the signal, Percival used his Semblance to create several spikes on his right leg. Stomping down, he fired them at Azalea and Layla like missiles. Reacting quickly, Layla spun around and used her own Semblance to telekinetically redirect the attack back at Percival and Ebony. The Bat Faunus immediately put up her shield to block as many attacks as she could while Percival used his own spikes like stepping stones to get above the girls. As he jumped in the air, he extended his claws and tried to slash at Layla before Azalea blocked the attack. Azalea then countered by grabbing at Percival's wrist and throwing him into the cityscape. "And it looks like both sides are off to a great start," Port announced as Azalea followed after Percival as he bounced off the floor.

As Azalea and Percival traded blows through the Urban Biome, Layla and Ebony started to open fire on each other with their respective guns. Layla had to keep moving as she dodged Ebony's rifle, but Ebony was easily blocking the attacks from Layla's Djinn Desire. Choosing to switch things up, Layla ran off toward the Forest Biome and took cover as she added Dust into her weapon. "Okay. Maybe I can trick her," Layla said to herself as she finished reloading and looked at the Dust in her bracelets. Taking aim, Ebony fired a shot that took out a few small branches before the bullet was embedded in a tree trunk. Layla moved after seeing the damage and went up into the trees to hide.

Not seeing Layla around, Ebony called out to the girl. "You can't really hide from me, Layla," the Bat Faunus said. "You aren't exactly wearing something suitable for camouflage. A dancing act, sure. But not for hiding in a forest." As she joked around, Ebony managed to hear a few twigs snap above her and fired her rifle where she thought Layla was. After she did, she heard gunshots and raised her shield to defend herself from flames. When the fire started to spread through the Forest Biome, Layla used her Semblance to throw her scimitar at Ebony and force her out into the next area as the Bat Faunus avoided the blade.

* * *

In the stands, the members of Fragment Hunter were joined by Jenny and Twilight as they watched the battle. "Man, they're really giving each other a hard time," Jenny commented as she watched Percival throw a spike at Azalea, which then separated into a shower of smaller spikes. Azalea countered the attack by twirling Gladion around to block every spike before kicking at Percival.

"You can say that again," Silver remarked as Layla and Ebony soon made their way over to the Desert Biome. Layla used her Semblance to kick up a cloud of sand before using Fire Dust to send a flurry of glass shards at Ebony.

"Go, Layla," Vinyl called out as she watched the girl kick up more sand for another attack. But Ebony countered by using a Wind Dust cartridge in her weapon to fire a gust of wind that blew Layla back into the Ocean Biome. "Come on! You can do it," Vinyl shouted in encouragement.

As the battle continued, Terracotta only watched on as he kept an eye on Azalea and Percival, who began to move into the Desert Biome. " _There's so much of us in those two_ ," he thought to himself as he remembered what he talked to Aurora Celeste about. The two believed that Percival Ivory was the son of their old teammate, Orchid Tilia. "Let's see how they deal with opponents of each other's caliber," he said out loud.

* * *

When Azalea was faced with Percival and Ebony, she turned to look at where Layla landed and saw she was figuring out what to do while inside the shipwreck. Deciding to help out her friend, Azalea used her Semblance's flashbang ability to blind the two other Faunus. As they recoiled from the technique, Azalea made her way over to the shipwreck in the Ocean Biome and met up with Layla. "Got any idea on how to deal with them," Azalea asked as she separated her weapon back into twin batons.

"Maybe," Layla said as she looked at the water surrounding them. "How do you feel about aquatic sports?"

"I'm not against them," Azalea remarked as she placed her batons into her greave. "You've seen my swimsuits." The girls smiled at each other before Layla put her plan into action. As Percival and Ebony's vision returned to normal, they headed for the Ocean Biome just in time to see the water rise up and get sent forward. The students of Shade Academy watched as Layla used Water Dust with her Semblance to create a giant wave and Azalea jumped onto the top of it. "Surf's up!" Using her own Dust, Azalea stood on top of the wave as Layla manipulated the water so that it crashed down on their opponents. Percival and Ebony were swept away and soon got hit by Azalea smacking them with a lariat.

Percival got up first and laughed in excitement as he watched Azalea ride the wave Layla was controlling. "Man, you guys always make things fun for me," Percival exclaimed as he jumped onto the water himself, using his Semblance to create a spike board. Seeing Percival surfing on the wave, Azalea and Layla manipulated the water so that it moved all around the air above the Ocean Biome and even over a few other parts of the arena. "Let's see who bites it first," Percival said as he began to chase after Azalea. The two Faunus raced across the water and Percival started to fire numerous spikes at Azalea while Layla tried to keep the water constructs in shape. Ebony maneuvered over to the shipwreck to try and attack Layla, but the girls of Team FCSA were able to stop her. Moving the water toward Ebony, Layla allowed Azalea to hit the Bat Faunus at the same time Percival fired a large spike that split apart into a shower of needles. The needles hit Ebony in the back and Percival winced at what he did. "Sorry, Ebony. She dodged," Percival apologized.

"And now, I'm doing this," Azalea said as she jumped off the wave and struck Ebony with one of her batons when it ejected out of her greave. After dealing the hit and knocking Ebony into the water, Azalea changed the Dust setting to Ice and unleashed her Semblance's 'Flash Bomb' effect. Instead of light, a cold mist shot out from Azalea's body and froze a good portion of the water around the Ocean Biome. Ebony shivered as she was partially frozen in ice and watched as her Aura levels lowered quite a bit, nearly causing her to be knocked out of the fight. "Layla! Send her flying," Azalea called out as she put her twin batons together. Layla used her Telekinesis to send Ebony into the air and Azalea hit the Bat Faunus hard enough that she was sent flying out of bounds.

When Ebony landed outside of the Ocean Biome, she continued to shiver as Port and Oobleck gave their commentary. "With a brilliant use of teamwork between the ladies of Team FCSA, Ebony Rain has been eliminated from the match by double knockout," Port said.

"I'm sure that she could use a warm blanket right about now," Oobleck remarked as Ebony tried to move and get rid of the frost still on her body. "Maybe some coffee, too," he mused as he took a sip of his own hot drink.

* * *

"Man, that was hot," Slate exclaimed while he watched the replay from when Azalea started riding the water, showing off everything that the girls of Team FCSA did to knock out Ebony.

"We get it. You _really_ like Azalea. Keep it in your pants," Rua teased as Pinkie giggled.

As Slate blushed and hid his face with his hat, Twilight Roseus turned to Cereza and the other members of Fragment Hunter. "I would have never thought of using Water Dust like that before," she said to the leader of Team FCSA.

"We originally made that technique for me and Layla to use together, but Azalea's new armor seems to help out with what we had planned," Cereza told Twilight. "I would have used my Semblance to run across the water while Layla confused the enemy."

"Sounds like it would've worked pretty well," Jenny remarked.

"I say it already did," Bianca said as she pointed at Percival staring down both girls. "Still, I'm sure he's going to be a tough guy to beat because of the last round. Silver got a few scars from him during their duel."

"And you know that how," Ivy asked with a knowing smile on her face as she spoke to the Dove Faunus, who only looked at Silver with a flirtatious gaze.

After the conversation ended, Pinkie and Vinyl kept cheering on their friends as their only opponent remaining was Percival Ivory. Terracotta kept watching alongside Aurora Celeste as the match continued. "Let's see what he'll do next," Aurora said as the two former members of Team NOCT paid attention to the battlefield.

* * *

Percival looked at Layla and Azalea as the girls regrouped with each other. "Man, that's pretty awesome," the Feline Faunus remarked as he laughed in excitement. "Now it's my turn to show off," he said as he channeled his Semblance to create a bone-like spike on his shoulder. Grabbing at the spike, he bent it and threw the object at Layla. The girl from Vacuo dodged the attack and only laughed as she thought the spike missed. Aiming her gun at Percival, neither member of Team FCSA saw the spike return and hit Layla in the back like a boomerang. When Layla was struck by the returning attack, Percival created spikes on his arms and legs as he started to do a series of flips. Cartwheeling at Layla with the blades on his limbs, he slashed away at Layla with enough force that knocked her into the Urban Biome.

Layla groaned in pain as she fell against some stairs and looked at the Aura readout to see that she was knocked out of the match. "A powerful attack from Percival Ivory has eliminated Layla Carbuncle from the match," Doctor Oobleck announced as Layla stood up, holding onto her arm. "Miss Carbuncle really should have watched her back, but I don't think any of us saw that coming."

"Well, Mister Ivory probably did," Port remarked. "Either way, we're now down to the heavy hitters of both teams! Let's see what both can do now that the field is all to themselves."

Returning to the center of the battlefield, Azalea and Percival stared each other down before Azalea used her Semblance to turn invisible. As the Feline Faunus looked around for her, Azalea punched and kicked at him from all different angles, dodging his claws as he tried to attack where he was hit. Thinking for a moment, Percival ran toward the border of the Desert Biome and grabbed some sand in each hand. Clapping his hands together, sand flew around the area and soon revealed where Azalea was hiding. "Found you," Percival said as he leaped at Azalea and grabbed her so he could deliver a headbutt.

Backing away from him after being hit and turning visible again, Azalea stomped her armored foot to eject her batons. However, she only did it to change the Dust settings to Wind and Gravity before putting them back into her greave. Azalea smirked as she used her Semblance to interact with the Dust she selected and wind started to swirl around her. When it did, Azalea began to float in the air with the wind lifting her up. Everyone watched as Azalea essentially began to fly and rush Percival for a haymaker before grabbing him and bringing him into the air so she could hit him with a bicycle kick. As Percival flew through the air, he was about to land outside of the arena before created a spike on his right arm and threw a punch. Keeping spike on his arm, Percival managed to fly forward and reach Azalea again. "When could you do that," Azalea questioned as she saw Percival flying with a spike rocket.

"...About now-ish," Percival admitted as he looked at his arm in confusion. "Honestly, I was trying to nail you with a spike as a last-ditch effort." As he moved through the air, Percival adjusted his spike so that it acted like a set of helicopter blades keeping him up rather than continuously moving. "I wouldn't say that I'm flying. More like holding onto my spikes for dear life as they move," he remarked.

"Either way, I think it's time we got back to battling," Azalea said as she flew toward Percival and nailed him with an ax kick. The Dust in her greave enhanced the kick and sent Percival crashing into the Forest Biome. Recovering from the crash, Percival roared as Azalea stopped flying and the two traded blow after blow, moving to each section of the battlefield until they reached the cityscape. When they did, Percival created two more boomerangs out of his spikes and threw them at Azalea. She dodged the makeshift weapons and deflected them with her batons as they returned, then she countered against Percival pouncing toward her by falling to the ground and kicking him off with both feet. "You're really tough, Percy. You managed to beat Layla _and_ Team SLVR before."

Percival smirked as he jumped back onto his feet, then answered Azalea. "I'm just a natural at combat. Combine that with my training and large Aura reserve, then I can deal with all sorts of opponents." Looking at the readouts, Percival saw that both he and Azalea were nearly at the elimination mark before he spoke again. "But it looks like you're the toughest opponent I've had yet."

"Well, let's end this with one final clash," Azalea said as she looked at the readout for herself. Percival smiled as he and Azalea started running toward different buildings and went for the roofs of them. When they saw that they were a distance away from each other, they started to run and jump from the rooftops to get closer. Approaching each other, the two Faunus prepared for their respective attacks as Azalea made her greave spark with flames and electricity while Percival created a bone spike on his left leg that spun like a drill. The two shouted battle cries at each other as they went with their flying kicks, nailing each other and fell back down to the ground.

After Percival and Azalea crashed on the floor, both of their Auras shimmered as they broke and the announcers commented on what happened. "Unbelievable! It appears that our competitors have knocked each other out," Professor Port exclaimed. "After such an intense battle, it ended in a draw!"

"According to the rules and regulations, neither side will be advancing," Oobleck stated. "Which is good as there can only be eight finalists in the single fighter matches this year."

"But both Azalea and Percival have shown that if one of them still had enough Aura, they would have deserved a spot in the finals," Port said. "Let's hear it for our contestants, everyone!"

As the audience cheered, Percival laughed in excitement about the ending result of the battle. "That was _awesome!_ I can't believe that's what happened," he exclaimed as he jumped back onto his feet while Azalea picked herself up. "Best match of my life," Percival said as he held out his hand to Azalea.

"It was pretty cool," Azalea said as she took Percival's hand and they did the latter's signature handshake. "I can't wait for us to battle each other again."

"Yeah, it would be fun," Percival agreed. As the two talked along their way out of the arena, Terracotta thought to himself and decided that it was time for him and Aurora to talk with Percival.

* * *

After the match, Percival was getting something to eat with his team when they saw Terracotta Gaia and Aurora Celeste approaching them. "Team PRDT. Congratulations on that battle with Team SAFR," Aurora said as she stood in front of them.

"Thank you. It would have been better to win, but we know what to work on for the 41st Vytal Festival Tournament in two years," Twilight said as she closed a book on Dust.

"Why are you here now," Ebony asked.

"We wanted to talk with Percival. Alone," Terracotta replied.

Listening to the Bull Faunus, the girls of Team PRDT decided to head off to check out the next match while Percival stayed behind with his bucket of popcorn. "So, what did you want to talk to me about," Percival asked after swallowing some food.

Aurora and Terracotta looked at each other before the latter spoke up. "We know who your mother is and we can probably get you to meet her," Terracotta said, causing Percival to drop his popcorn in shock.

* * *

 **Okay! I'm done with this chapter of Sideline and we have the first half of the doubles round completed! I thought that a draw between characters would have been an interesting end to a fight, so I went with this ending. As for the last line, I'll get to that eventually as part of the time skip that happens between Volume 3 and Volume 4. Until then, you'll just have to wait for the current "Volume" to end to see what happens.**

 **For music that plays during this chapter, I was thinking that you could play your own choices. But when Azalea and Percival talk in the air, "Switch On!" from Kamen Rider Fourze plays for their duel with each other. I feel like that would be their battle theme for when they fight together or against each other like they have been.**

 **I hope that you enjoyed this chapter because Sunset and Vinyl are going to get in on the action when I come back with this story. However, I'm also thinking of returning back to my "Go Go RWBY Rangers" fic because December is approaching and I want to keep writing that. Either way, I would love to see some reviews of this chapter and read what you thought of it. Oh, and why not share your own ideas for RWBY stuff like characters or Grimm. I might talk with you about them if I like them enough.**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


	46. Never Miss A Beat: Another Story

**Hey, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Now, I've been working on my other story for a bit as well as watching more episodes of RWBY Volume 6, so that's some of the reason why I haven't updated this story in a while. But I at least had more time to plan out what I wanted for it and a few other chapters ahead.**

 **Last time, Azalea and Layla of Team FCSA battled against Percival and Ebony of Team PRDT. After a tough battle from both sides, the match ends in a draw and nobody moves onto the finals. After the battle, Percival meets up with Terracotta Gaia and Aurora Celeste, who say that they know who his mother is and can probably get them to meet each other.**

 **Now before I continue this story, there are quite a few things in Volume 6 I enjoyed a lot, but there's also one thing that heavily contradicts an earlier chapter and memorable moment for my characters in-universe. Near the end of the Volume, a gargantuan Grimm called a "Leviathan" showed up. It looks very different than my own and I actually like the design of the canon Leviathan a lot. So, I looked up a few things and I figured out a new name for my sea monster Grimm. I'll now call my crocodile/whale hybrid creation, a "Cetannin". The name comes from the whale constellation known as "Cetus", as well as a mythical creature called a "Tannin" which call be translated from Modern Hebrew language as "crocodile". Very fitting name, right? My characters will now call that monster by that name starting in this chapter.**

 **Tell me what you think of the new Grimm name and everything else you read in the reviews, please. It always makes me happy to know that people respond to my chapters.**

 **Let's dance!**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own in this story are my own Original Characters**

* * *

After hearing what Terracotta said, Percival Ivory dropped his popcorn in shock and it spilled all over the floor as he looked at the Bull Faunus. "Y-you're kidding, right," Percival asked in surprise. "He's joking, right," he asked Aurora Celeste. "Y-you guys know my mom?"

"Her name is Orchid Tilia," Terracotta said as he showed the young Faunus a photo of the woman on his Scroll. "She's a Gecko Faunus that was one of our closest allies in Beacon before she went off to explore Remnant as a Huntress. She was also my girlfriend during the first few years of Team NOCT's time at Beacon Academy."

"She also slept with most people she met and held us back a year by not studying since she was too _busy_ ," Aurora mentioned as she rolled her eyes. "I think that was her intention because we got to compete in the Vytal Festival one more time. But Noir wasn't happy at all."

"I wasn't exactly thrilled about it either," Terracotta remarked.

"She was sticking her tongue down your throat! I don't think you could have argued when you first learned about it," Aurora exclaimed as she started to sound like a teenage girl arguing with her brother.

"Do we really have to bring that up," Terracotta said as he remembered being a teenager and Orchid easily manipulating him with her flirting. Sighing and looking back at Percival, Terracotta calmed himself before speaking about his old teammate some more. "Back to the main topic, Orchid's habit of ensuring a warm bed during her travels has brought up a number of things for her. She loved enjoying life and making people happy, so that's why she did what she did. However, she's also the type to not realize the consequences of her actions until it's too late."

"We've heard that she became pregnant and wanted to at least make sure that the baby she had was healthy," Aurora continued. "I wouldn't be surprised if this happened more than once."

"I could have siblings," Percival asked as he heard what Aurora said and processed everything.

Terracotta nodded before he spoke more about Orchid. "She may have left you with your father, but it was because she had a job to do by being on the road and helping whoever she could. If she was going to stay with you, I think she would have loved you," Terra stated. "We've been in contact with her before and the last time we talked, she was in Menagerie. She's bound to have moved on by now, but I can help you look for her after the tournament ends."

Percival thought about everything he heard about his mother, he turned back to Terracotta and immediately gave his answer. "I want to at least meet her and tell her what I've been able to do as a fighter, like taking out a Cetannin with Azalea. I want your help, sir." Terracotta smiled as he patted Percival on the shoulder and the younger Faunus headed for the stands again. "Come on! Let's see who's winning the other battles," he called out.

Aurora smiled herself as she looked at Percival's excitement. "He's _just_ like Orchid was when she wasn't jumping out of perfectly good cakes," she remarked.

"Are you _ever_ going to let that go, Aurora," Terracotta asked as they remembered Orchid Tilia's 'exploits' during Team NOCT celebrating his 20th birthday.

* * *

While Percival was talking with Terracotta and Aurora, the Doubles Round matches went on and everyone was surprised by Coco Adel and Yatsuhashi Daichi's battle against Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black. Sunset Blaze and Vinyl Aurum were still talking about the fight they witnessed as they waited for their opponents. "That match was too weird. How was Coco beaten like that? And something's up with Mercury if he could block enough damage from Yatsuhashi's sword like that," Sunset said as she thought about the combatants. "Plus, he was moving way too fast for someone in his year. What kind of training did he have?"

Vinyl only shrugged as she listened to Sunset talking about the fight from earlier. Using sign language, Vinyl 'spoke' to her friend and gave her input. "I don't really know, but something _does_ feel wrong about him."

"We might as well focus on our match," Sunset sighed as she saw the two boys she and Vinyl were going to face off against. "Sun Wukong and Neptune Vasilias. Didn't expect to fight you guys," Sunset remarked as she looked at the opponents from Team SSSN of Mistral's Haven Academy.

"This might be a good one," Sun said as he greeted the two members of Team SAFR.

Vinyl nodded in agreement before Neptune spoke to the girls. "Ladies, you've got skills and really nice hair. You're as cool as me, Vinyl. Maybe when the match is over, we can check out the fairgrounds together?" Vinyl placed her right thumb and index finger on her chin, as if she was thinking. But Sunset knew what Vinyl was doing as she saw the position of her fingers. "You thinking about it? No problem. I can wait for you to give an answer," Neptune said. "I'm sure that if you agree, it'll be a nice time for the both of us."

Seeing that Neptune wasn't getting it, Vinyl facepalmed and turned to look at him. "Dude, I'm a lesbian," Vinyl bluntly stated as she threw her arms into the air. Hearing what she said, Neptune laughed in embarrassment while Sun laughed out loud with Sunset.

"Oh, well... I-uh-um... This is awkward, isn't it," Neptune managed to say as he rubbed the back of his head. Vinyl nodded as a reply while Sun and Sunset calmed themselves down. "You... wanna go check out cute girls after this," Neptune managed to ask and Vinyl smirked to answer him as she made a finger gun gesture. "Okay! Less awkward now."

"You can say that again," Sunset said as the battlefield started to randomize itself. Looking around, the two members of Team SAFR saw that their side consisted of a Swamp Biome that wasn't used in the team matches as well as the Lava Biome that consisted of volcanic rock and had geysers of lava that would erupt at times. "Well, this is an interesting combo," Sunset remarked as she saw the biomes.

Neptune whimpered as he looked at the swampy section of the battlefield, but Sun lightly punched him to snap him out of it. "Dude, be cool. It's smaller compared to the ocean from before," Sun told Neptune as the other two biomes were selected. Rising up from behind the boys of Team SSSN, the Desert and Ice sections appeared, prompting Sun to laugh happily at the fact he had a slight homefield advantage. "What luck," he commented.

"I wouldn't go saying that just yet," Sunset stated as she and Vinyl prepared their weapons.

* * *

"And with the battlefield ready, Sunset Blaze and Vinyl Aurum of Beacon will soon face off against Sun Wukong and Neptune Vasilias of Haven," Professor Port stated as the match was broadcast on television. Numerous establishments had the Vytal Festival playing, including a small juice bar in Vale called 'Fruits Basket' where a handful of people were watching the next match.

"It appears that the burning Lava and freezing Ice Biomes are just opposite of each other," Oobleck remarked. "And the Swamp Biome is between them on one side while the Desert section is the final location. I'm sure that none of our fighters want to get wet in the swamp."

"Especially not that Neptune kid," one patron said as they remembered Team SSSN's match against Team NDGO. Most of the people inside chuckled as they remembered Neptune's aversion to water during the Team Battles. One of the only patrons who wasn't laughing was a blond male with silver highlights in his hair as he sipped at a smoothie. "Hey, which side are you rooting for," the patron asked the blond.

The male finished his drink just as he was asked the question and turned around to reply. "I have to go with Beacon since I went there myself," he remarked as he asked the shopkeeper for an orange. "Let's see how those girls do now," he said to himself as he held the fruit in his hand.

* * *

Vinyl and Sunset prepared themselves against Sun and Neptune just as the countdown for the match began. "3, 2, 1, begin," announced Doctor Oobleck.

"Showtime," Vinyl and Sunset said together and separated to start their battle strategy while Vinyl's Rhythm Scratch played music for the match. Sunset started the battle by firing her sniper rifle at Neptune and Sun, forcing them to block the shots by spinning their trident and staff respectively. After Sunset put the boys on the defensive, Vinyl managed to get between them and used Rhythm Scratch to create clawed gauntlets so she could slash at them while preforming her dance-like movements. Her style was able to overwhelm Neptune, but Sun was able to block and redirect most of Vinyl's attacks. After kicking Neptune and using her Semblance to release an energy blast, Vinyl knocked him into the Lava Biome where Sunset was waiting. When Neptune was left on his own to fight the leader of Team SAFR, Sun swung his staff into Vinyl and pushed her back to the Ice Biome.

"Looks like things are already starting to go in different directions," Port announced as he and Oobleck watched the fights take place in opposite sides of the battlefield. "Let's see what each side will do."

Vinyl soon regained her footing on the frozen ground of the Ice Biome while Sun was easily staying balanced thanks to his monkey tail helping him. Sun skated over to Vinyl and separated his staff into nunchucks so that he could attack her from multiple angles. Vinyl used her hard light claws to try and block the weapon, but it was more difficult to do so on the icy terrain. Changing tactics, Vinyl created a platform out of a larger hard light disk and moved away. Seeing some Ice Dust crystals supplied for the battlefield, Vinyl grabbed one and used it with her Semblance. Sun saw that Vinyl was aiming at him and dodged, but Vinyl's shot was still able to freeze the end of his tail and mess with his balance. "Argh! That's smarts! Cold cold cold cold cold," Sun exclaimed as he fell onto his butt and smashed the ice on his tail by hitting the floor. While Sun dealt with his tail, Vinyl fired another shot in the direction of the Lava Biome and had the blast stay low to the ground. While the blast traveled, it created a rail of ice that Vinyl slid across like a skateboarder.

"And with some interesting tactics by Miss Vinyl Aurum, she's now moving toward the Lava Biome to help Sunset Blaze," Oobleck stated. "And it looks like she's coming in at the right moment. Neptune Vasilias is proving to be quite capable against the leader of Team SAFR." Oobleck's observations of the battle were proven right as Neptune's blasts of electricity were keeping Sunset on the defensive. She barely had time to counterattack with her own flames because Neptune was aiming at her hands whenever she prepared her Fire Dust jacket.

Vinyl's ice rail made it to the Lava Biome and melted from a geyser that was ready to go off, but the agile fighter managed to hit Neptune with a flying kick that knocked him away from Sunset as he prepared to attack her with his trident. "Thanks, Vinyl," Sunset said as she watched Neptune get up. With room to actually use her Fire Dust, Sunset released a flurry of small fireballs that attacked Neptune and started to singe his outfit, prompting him to panic and put the embers out. "Let's deal with this guy," Sunset exclaimed as she and Vinyl prepared their swords.

After seeing the girls head for him, Neptune soon noticed Sun clapping his hands together and create two copies of himself through his Semblance. As the clones struck Vinyl and Sunset, Neptune struck the girls with his weapon to shock them and knock them away. "Nice one, Nep," Sun remarked as he saw the girls get pushed back toward the Desert Biome and the center of the battlefield. Vinyl stood up and used her weapon to create hard light disks that she threw at the boys. Sun and Neptune used their weapons to deflect the attacks while the Monkey Faunus thought of an idea. "I think I know how to deal with her a bit," Sun told Neptune. After whispering his plan to his friend, Sun went for Vinyl and started to use his staff to knock her around, which forced her to use a hard light sword to try and counterattack.

While the two clashed with each other once more, Sun laughed as he performed an acrobatic kick that sent Vinyl flying into the Desert Biome. Crashing into a sand dune, Vinyl started spitting sand out of her mouth and prepared to use her hard light claws again as she stood up. But to her surprise and annoyance, sand got into Rhythm Scratch and made it malfunction. "Not cool," Vinyl said as she gave Sun an irritated look.

"It seems as though Miss Aurum's Rhythm Scratch has been jammed," Oobleck announced as Vinyl inspected her weapon.

"Oh, that was a horrible pun and you know it," Port retorted as he held a hand against his face.

Seeing that she couldn't repair her Hard Light Projection Braces in the middle of a fight, Vinyl turned to see Sun sending more copies at her, prompting her to use her Semblance and fighting skills to keep them away for as long as she could. After dealing with about 3 clones without any issue, Sun sent two more before running into the battle himself. Vinyl prepared to attack, but the first clone managed to grab her and throw her into the air. As soon as she was, the second clone gave Sun a boost toward Vinyl so that he could aim her at the Swamp Biome with a strong kick. When Vinyl splashed into the water, Sun called out to Neptune. "Now, dude!"

Hearing his signal while escaping Sunset's attacks, Neptune changed his weapon to its trident form and carefully made his way toward the Swamp Biome. Placing the electrified weapon in the water, Vinyl was shocked while she was still in it and got eliminated from the match. "And just like last time, Neptune Vasilias manages to use his weapon and the environment to his advantage," Port told everyone as he reminded them of Team SSSN's victory against Team NDGO of Shade Academy. As soon as Vinyl was dealt with, Neptune immediately ran from the swamp and regrouped with Sun as he spun his staff around. "Now Miss Blaze is going to have to fight alone."

* * *

In the stands, Fragment Hunter was discussing the battle as Sunset thought of what to do. "Ah, man. Poor Vinyl," Silver remarked.

"If she didn't crash into the sand, she would've gotten a better chance against Sun," Cereza added.

"She still did great with how she used that Ice Dust," Layla stated.

"Let's see if Sunset can handle this on her own," Celadon said.

"I'm sure she can make things even," Lapis voiced.

On another side of the stands, Smoke Shadow and his gang were watching the match with interest. "Let's see if she can do it," Smoke said.

* * *

Sunset looked at the boys and realized what she could do. Running off for the Swamp Biome, she dashed through the murky water until she jumped onto a log. "Let's see you boys come here and fight me," Sunset called out. _"With Neptune's ironic fear of water, he likely won't be able to follow me in here. But we'll see if he'll actually do that,"_ Sunset thought to herself as she waited for Sun and Neptune's next move.

Sun and Neptune watched as their opponent made her way deeper into the swamp before aiming her rifle at them. As the two dodged her shots, the Monkey Faunus made his way into the water and took cover behind a tree while Neptune started to shake nervously. "Come on, Neptune. I know you're scared, but we have to do this," Sun said.

"Okay, fine. I have _something_ for situations like this," Neptune said. "I'd rather not use it with everyone watching, but I already made a fool of myself earlier," he remarked as he placed his goggles over his eyes. Pulling at a cord hidden on his jacket, everyone watched as they wondered what Neptune was doing. Suddenly, a pair of water wings inflated on Neptune's jacket and he stood ready to battle while everyone just stared at him.

Everybody was speechless at seeing Neptune Vasilias wearing water wings in the middle of a battle. The silence was soon broken as somebody started to laugh hysterically at the sight. In the stands, Weiss Schnee was laughing her head off as she saw Neptune's appearance. Soon enough, the stands slowly started to laugh as well until the entirety of Amity Colosseum was in an uproar at the scene they witnessed. "I... hehehe... have no words for-or-or-or this," Professor Port tried to say, but he was laughing too much.

After hearing everyone laugh at what just happened, Neptune slouched in disappointment until Sun came back and placed a hand on his shoulder. When he cheered up his friend, Sun silently pointed out that Sunset was having a laughing fit like the crowd and was open to an attack. Nodding in agreement, Neptune changed his weapon into its guandao form while Sun pulled out his staff and the two rushed Sunset while she was distracted. Hearing their splashing footsteps, Sunset saw the boys on the offensive and jumped out of the way. "Whoa! A simple pair of water wings and you're okay to battle in here," Sunset questioned as she dodged each attack. "Maybe you should've used them in the fight against Team NDGO."

"I didn't expect the Ocean Biome then, so I didn't have them in my jacket," Neptune said as he swung his weapon at Sunset. "After that match, I thought that it would be smart to have them ready for the doubles round. Impressed?" Sunset pulled out her sword and started to counter Neptune's weapon, but he was quick enough to change it into its trident mode in order to catch Sunset's blade. When he did, a current of electricity flowed through Sunset's sword and started to shock her. As Sunset screamed in pain, her Aura soon flashed a pink color for a brief second and she stopped screaming. "What's happening," Neptune asked as Sunset began to move his trident aside with her sword.

"Remember what Doctor Oobleck said about Nora's Semblance," Sunset told Neptune as she pulled a fist back.

"Not in the face," Neptune cried out as he knew he wouldn't be able to dodge Sunset's punch when her physical abilities were enhanced by channeling Nora Valkyrie's Semblance. Sunset swiftly threw a fiery punch into Neptune's stomach that sent him smashing through a tree, popping the water wings he had, and sent him back to the center of the battlefield. "Thank you," Neptune weakly said as his Aura fell down to 2% and he was eliminated from the match.

With Neptune and Vinyl knocked out of the battle, Sun and Sunset stared each other down as Doctor Oobleck spoke. "We're in the dead heat of the fight now. Both sides have lost their teammates and only the leaders of each team are left. Which of these two fighters shall be victorious," Oobleck said. After Oobleck made his statement, the two fighters ran toward each other and started to fight in the center of the battlefield. As Sunset swung her sword, Sun used his staff to deflect it before counterattacking with a punch to her face. After taking the punch, Sunset spun around and used the momentum to deliver a strong kick to Sun's abdomen. She could have sworn that she heard a good number of fangirls shouting 'Not in his beautiful abs'.

"Try this," Sun exclaimed as he used his Semblance to send a trio of clones at Sunset. When the Monkey Faunus did that, Sunset immediately thought of a way to counter it and used her Semblance to copy his. Clapping her hands together as her body flashed yellow, Sunset created three copies of herself and sent them toward Sun's in order to stop them. As the clones attacked each other, the vanished after getting struck and the real fighters continued their clash. Sunset decided to try and think of a way to deal with Sun, so she started used Azalea's Semblance to vanish. "Huh? Where'd she go," Sun asked.

Most of the audience was wondering what happened as well, but Port and Oobleck began to explain what they witnessed during the fight. "You're not seeing things and there's no cheating going on either," Port stated. "Miss Blaze has a very unique Semblance that her friends call 'Aura Empathy'. With it, she can connect with a person's mind and soul for a variety of abilities."

"Quite right, Peter," Oobleck agreed. "Sunset's abilities include mind reading and telepathy, sensing emotions, seeing through another person's eyes as if they were her own, and the ability to use another person's Semblance as her own or bestow them to others in exchange for using up more Aura than it usually would take the original user."

"Which is quite the problem for now because her Aura is getting dangerously low," Port remarked as he checked the readout for Sun and Sunset. Suddenly, Sun's Aura dropped a little more and everyone's attention was back on the fight as Sunset revealed herself and delivered a chop to Sun's neck from behind. After getting hit like that, Sun countered with a kick to Sunset's chest and started to use his nunchucks. With acrobatic movements and well-placed attacks from his weapon, Sun was able to prevent Sunset from even drawing her sword while he struck her from a variety of angles. With a final kick, the Monkey Faunus sent his opponent flying into the Ice Biome and she slid across the frozen terrain until she came to a stop. Sunset groaned in pain and was ready to fight again as she stood up, but Professor Port's announcement stopped her. "And with that final attack, Sunset Blaze has been taken out of the tournament because of her Aura level. The winner is Sun Wukong of Haven Academy!"

Looking up, Sunset saw that her Aura had been knocked into the red by Sun and she lost. Sighing, Sunset went up to her opponent and shook his hand. "Good match, Sun," she said.

"It was," Sun replied. "I might be feeling that kick for a while though," he remarked with a little laugh as he rubbed his abs.

"I'm sure a number of girls would be willing to help you feel better after that," Sunset joked. The two soon left the arena and met back up with their friends before heading to the fairgrounds to relax after a tough battle.

* * *

Back at 'Fruits Basket', the patrons were talking about the match that just ended. "Hahaha! Water wings? Seriously? Hahaha! Well, at least he didn't panic that much," one patron said as he talked about Neptune's actions at the Swamp Biome. "Too bad about Beacon losing," he said to the blond man with silver highlights.

"They put up a good fight," the blond commented as he paid for his food and drink. "The other team just put up a better one. No real need to get discouraged. You just have to keep moving forward when times get tough."

"Wise words, man," the patron said. "Where are you off to now?"

"Seeing family," the blonde stated as he turned to reveal his cerise-colored eyes.

* * *

At the fairgrounds, Fragment Hunter was hanging out with Team SSSN after the match. As they talked about a variety of things, Neptune and Vinyl flirted with a number of girls while the later shopped for collectible pins. Soon, Cereza saw Lucifer Fujita with a bag over his shoulder as he passed by the area. "Father, are you already leaving," Cereza asked as she approached her father.

"Indeed, child. My missions have ended and I have to get back home to Notremodo," Lucifer explained. "I promised Pierre that I would bring back souvenirs for him. You know how he can't exactly leave his home."

"I know," Cereza replied. "Perhaps my friends and I can visit soon?"

Lucifer chuckled as he turned to hug his daughter. "I'd love that very much, my child. I'm sure that Pierre would love to meet your friends if you came home."

"That'll all depend though," Cereza commented. "Safe travels, Father."

"Thank you, Cereza. I'll see you again when our paths cross," Lucifer said as he vanished and left a few feathers behind as an effect of his Time Mirage Semblance.

As Cereza held a feather in her fingertips, the rest of Fragment Hunter arrived. "Did your dad leave already," Rua asked as she noticed the feathers.

"He did, but we'll see him again. Especially if we go to my hometown of Notremodo in the east," Cereza answered. "It's one of the towns you see before the coast."

"Well, at least we'll have a stop to make before we visit Mirabelle," Azalea remarked.

"Come on, I wanna see Pyrrha Nikos battle," Pinkie said as she started to pull Slate back toward Amity Colosseum.

"Slow down, Pinkie. We aren't really in a rush if we can teleport," Slate reminded. Teleporting to the stands again, Fragment Hunter started to watch as Pyrrha and Nora were ready to face off against their opponents in the arena with Forest, Mountain, Desert, and Ice Biomes. "I'm sure Pyrrha's ready for anything that this tournament will throw at her."

* * *

 **And I'm finished with this chapter! Wow, this took a while. Now then, the first thing that's first is the things about the battle itself. For music, I thought that a good choice for the battle against the K-Pop inspirations of Team SSSN was some K-Pop music itself. Either that or the music that played during Team SSSN's canon battle with Team NDGO since it played during a short moment in Volume 6's first episode. The specific songs that I thought would work are "Pop/Stars" by K/DA or "Fantastic Baby" by Big Bang (which happens to be the band Team SSSN's appearances are inspired by).**

 **Second, the battle itself is my own take on how Sun Wukong got into the finals with Yang, Mercury, Pyrrha, and Penny. Originally, there was supposed to be a battle between Sun and Neptune VS Pyrrha and Nora with several of the Biomes I had used in this chapter, but it got removed for time reasons and not being super important to the plot of Volume 3. The swamp area was key to the fight because Neptune's fear of water and the water wings would have been used, including everyone laughing at Neptune's little "transformation" after Weiss started busting a gut. I swear, I remember reading about these details before, so I'm not making them up entirely.**

 **Third, that blond with silver highlights is important. You'll see more of him later on in the story.**

 **Fourth, the areas I mentioned at the end of the chapter as Pyrrha and Nora's unseen battle are just a little reference to Code Lyoko I wanted to add because I'm also planning some antagonists based on that show as well. Be ready to see some interesting villains when the time comes.**

 **With the Doubles Round over, we'll be moving onto the parts of the Volume that start going bad for everyone in-universe. That's right, we'll be seeing Fragment Hunter's view of Yang being used as part of Cinder's plan for the Fall of Beacon soon. It's also one reason why I had Lucifer Fujita leave in this chapter. I'm pretty sure that the guy who can stop time using his Semblance is going to easily deal with evil plans.**

 **Let's see how our heroes will do when the good times stop rolling. Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	47. Lighting The Match

**Hello, readers! WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". After focusing a little more on "Go Go RWBY Rangers", I'm at a good point where I want to focus more on my OCs and their version of what happens at Beacon Academy. Especially with a few things I have in store for the Fall of Beacon itself and a couple of new characters in the works for this story.**

 **Last time, Sunset and Vinyl of Team SAFR fought against Sun and Neptune of Team SSSN. It was a tough battle for both sides, but Sun Wukong was victorious in the end. With all of Fragment Hunter eliminated from the tournament, they're going to enjoy the finals and cheer on their friends. But will things go the way they expect them? How will they handle what happens if things go wrong? Let's find out.**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own in this fic are my own Original Characters**

* * *

After the Doubles Rounds were finished, the finals of the tournament were approaching. While the members of Fragment Hunter were a little upset that none of them were advancing, they were happy to know several of their friends were among the 40th Vytal Festival Tournament's Top 8. Yang Xiao Long, Pyrrha Nikos, Sun Wukong, and even Penny Polendina were ready to fight for their school, leaving Fragment Hunter conflicted about who to root for as they gathered in the courtyard. "After everything they've done, Yang or Pyrrha deserve to win it for Beacon," Silver said as he voiced his opinion about the finals.

"Yeah, but you can't count Sun out. He did well in his battles," Layla mentioned.

"Same with Penny. She was able to handle Russel and Sky with ease," Azalea remarked as she thought back to Penny and Ciel's match against the members of Team CRDL.

"I bet that if we talk with any of them, they'd say that they would win the whole thing," Rua voiced. "Well, maybe not Pyrrha. She went to talk with Professor Ozpin."

"What would he have to talk to her about," Slate questioned as he let Azalea slide closer to him.

"Who knows? I'd try reading his mind again, but that was something I don't want to do again," Sunset stated as she remembered testing her Semblance on the headmaster of Beacon Academy.

"You were just tired from reading all of our minds that one time," Celadon said. "I'm sure that if you tried again, it could work."

"That's not it," Sunset said as she started to remember what she saw in Ozpin's head. "It's like there was more stuff to look through than I've ever seen before. He's probably had a lot to see over his life."

"So has my grandfather," Rebecca commented. "I think that's just how it is for Huntsmen."

"Either way, I believe we should head back inside," Cereza suggested. "There's no use in focusing on details that we can't understand immediately. Best to come back to it later." Everyone agreed with the leader of Team FCSA and headed back into the school for their next meal.

* * *

The one-on-one finals of the Vytal Festival Tournament started off with Yang Xiao Long fighting against Mercury Black in the first match. Everyone was excited about the two martial artists battling each other with everything they had. The intense battle kept the audience on the edge of their seats as Yang and Mercury kept getting an advantage over each other. By the end of the fight, Yang was bombarded with a large number of Wind Dust bullets that Mercury had struck her all at once. Mercury looked satisfied with his win and was about to walk out of the arena when Yang was revealed to be standing with her Semblance activated. Fragment Hunter cheered as the powerhouse of Team RWBY delivered a beating to Mercury that broke his Aura and won the battle for her. But after she did, she suddenly attacked Mercury and broke his leg unprovoked, shocking everyone. When she did, soldiers from Atlas and Atlesian Knights surrounded Yang while Mercury cried out on pain. "Yang Xiao Long, stand down," one of the soldiers ordered as weapons were aimed at the girl.

Emerald Sustrai ran to Mercury's side while Yang was confused by everything that was happening. Hearing the replay from the event on the screens, the footage showed her attack and Mercury screaming in pain when it happened. As Yang looked at the faces of her friends, her own was full of frightened shock and confusion. As she looked horrified as a stretcher was brought for Mercury, she spoke to the guards. "You don't understand! He attacked me, I swear," Yang said pointing at Mercury.

While the guards raised their weapons higher to keep Yang from doing anything, Sunset's head was throbbing from the intense storm of thoughts and emotions of the stadium. While she held her head, she tried to focus on Yang and her Semblance allowed her to tell that the blonde wasn't lying. Sunset could sense that Yang was scared about not understanding what was happening, so she turned to the rest of Fragment Hunter. "We need to help her," she told the others.

Immediately, Rua teleported next to Yang with Azalea and Rebecca by her side. "Hey, back off," Rua exclaimed as she and Rebecca stood in front of the guards. At the same time, Azalea ran off to find the paramedics that took Mercury away. "She's trying to explain herself, so let her."

"You saw it for yourself," the lead soldier said as he looked at Rua while keeping his gun aimed at Yang. "It's even repeating up on the screen. She attacked him without warning."

"He attacked me," Yang exclaimed again as Rebecca saw her lilac eyes looked nearly colorless. "He was pissed that I beat him and tried to kick me again. I had to defend myself."

"There are _millions_ of witnesses who saw the attack happen live," one of the other soldiers stated.

"And we have one that can read minds," Rua shouted as she grabbed the soldier by the collar. "She can prove that Yang's telling the truth! And if you don't believe me, I'm going to shove your gun _right up your stupid a_ -," Rua said and was about to threaten the soldier, but Rebecca struck a pressure point on Rua's neck to knock her out.

"My apologies for her behavior," Rebecca said just as Azalea came back. "Where did you go," the ninja asked as the soldiers looked at the Faunus.

"That's what I want to know as well," the lead soldier stated.

"I was looking for the paramedics that took Mercury away," Azalea explained. "I was going to tell them my mom had a healing Semblance and could help him, but he was already taken to a hospital."

Yang turned to Azalea and spoke to the Faunus. "Lea, you believe me when I say I was defending myself, right?"

Azalea didn't know how to answer, but gave one to Yang after some hesitation. "I'm not sure what to think because of what I saw, but I know that you wouldn't do that sort of thing normally," Azalea said.

Before anybody could say anything else, General Ironwood arrived and turned to everyone. "I'm here to escort Miss Xiao Long to her dorm room," he stated. Looking at two Atlesian Knight-200s, the robots obeyed and helped Ironwood escort Yang to Beacon Academy. The jeers and looks Yang got from people as she was taken away made her feel like a prisoner.

* * *

Fragment Hunter walked through the halls of the dorms as they spoke about Yang's apparent attack on Mercury and the news reports about it. "I _hate_ these people," Rua exclaimed as she looked at several news posts on social media. "They think they can just come to their own conclusions without getting the other person's side of the story! This just pisses me off! This one is saying that 'Yang Xiao Long is a violent fighter that enjoys beating down helpless opponents' and there are a few others that claim she's a bimbo!" At this point, Rua began to growl like a dog and bare her teeth as she kept expressing her anger. "Not only that, but they're blaming Ozpin for encouraging these actions! What do they get from saying shit like this?! I'm going to rip their skulls out of their heads and beat them to death with them!"

"Okay, first of all, you're kinda proving their point, Rua," Lapis stated. "Second, how do you beat someone to death with their own skull? That doesn't seem physically possible."

"I'm pretty sure Terracotta could do it and the poor sap would keep screaming that," Slate remarked. Soon, the group saw General Ironwood walking toward their direction with a pair of Atlesian Knights by his sides. "Guess he finished talking to Team RWBY about what happened."

Seeing Ironwood approaching them, Azalea was the first to speak with Atlas Academy's headmaster. "Sir, what going on with Yang," she asked.

"Team RWBY has been disqualified from the tournament because of the attack," Ironwood stated. "Miss Xiao Long claims to have acted in self-defense, but that's not exactly what I believe."

"You think the stress and adrenaline got to her," Sunset said as she used her Semblance to learn what he told Team RWBY. "You didn't want to do it, but the public already made their own conclusions about Mercury getting hurt. You don't want to cause an uproar because of the incident affecting Grimm already. It would just make things worse."

Ironwood was surprised by what Sunset said, but remembered her abilities as he composed himself. "Precisely, Miss Blaze. Judgment can be clouded in an instant on the battlefield. You'll see things that aren't actually there. Even when the battle is past," he replied, grabbing his right shoulder as he did. "If you'll all excuse me, I have to attend to some other matters. You may all speak to Miss Xiao Long if you want to."

As the teenagers watched the general leave, they thought about what to do. Deciding to give Team RWBY space to sort things out at the moment, they went off to find Terracotta and ask what he thought about the incident. As they did, Smoke Shadow walked through a wall when the halls were empty. "Something's fishy about this," the criminal remarked to himself before contacting his team.

* * *

Fragment Hunter managed to find Terracotta, Ivy, and Ventus at the courtyard as they were discussing the incident for themselves with Aurora and Nocturne Celeste. "I know Yang. She's a fighter, but not ruthless. Something must have happened to her during that battle," Terracotta said as he finished a drink he had and crushed the can in his bare hands.

"I just hope that boy is okay," Ivy voiced. "I could have helped him with my Semblance, but he was already taken to Haven to be with his family."

"Sometimes it's a better decision to be among loved ones after something like this," Nocturne said. "However, I'm sure that they won't be very fond of Yang after that.

As Azalea's parents talked with the Celeste Sisters, Ventus looked like something was troubling him about everything. "Uncle Ven? Is something wrong," Azalea asked.

Ventus looked at his niece as he answered her question. "I'm fine, but something's bugging me about that kid. Ever since that first round, I think I know something about him. His name just... sounds familiar to me," Ventus replied.

"Well, you've been around Remnant a lot, so somethings are bound to seem familiar to you," Aurora suggested.

"Well yeah, but... I just can't stop thinking about it. Who is Mercury Black," Ventus questioned.

"Yeah, that's a good question. Who exactly is he," Silver remarked. "All we know that he, Emerald, Cinder, and that other girl are from Haven. They don't exactly talk to us much."

"Well, we know several people from Mistral already," Celadon said. "I think it would be a good idea to ask them."

"Dibs on interrogating Team JADE," Rua exclaimed as she cracked her knuckles.

"I might ask somebody else," Sunset said as she knew who to question. "Let's split up and go ask them." At her suggestion, Fragment Hunter went off to find any students they knew from Haven Academy or visitors from Mistral.

* * *

Searching the fairgrounds, Rua and Celadon looked for Team JADE as they knew Azalea's old bullies were still around for the rest of the Vytal Festival Tournament. After a few minutes of searching, they found who they were looking for and approached them at one of the food stalls. Clearing her throat, Celadon caught Team JADE's attention. "What do you want," Envy Sinn asked as she glared at the girls.

"We're just here to ask a few questions," Celadon said.

"If it's about what we think about that bimbo attacking that guy with bad hair, she deserves getting kicked out," Aoi Lobelia stated.

Hearing their opinion on Yang, Rua glared at the girls of Team JADE before she spoke up. "How about you shut it before I beat you so badly that you can only eat your lunch through a mechanical straw," Rua threatened.

"Make us, shrimp," Envy retorted as she got in Rua's face.

As the two girls started to glare at each other, Celadon interrupted them. "It's not Yang that we wanted to ask you about. It's Mercury," she clarified.

"What about him," Jet Pitch asked.

"I'm just wondering what you know about him since he goes to your school. Have you ever seen him in classes? Has he ever talked to you," Celadon elaborated as she questioned Team JADE. "I'm sure that you've at least met him."

"And why should we tell you," Jet countered. "You and that Dairy Cow friend of yours aren't going to get any information from us."

"That's because we don't have any," Duke Cobalt stated, making his teammates turn to face him. "We've never met Mercury Black before. But then again, Haven's a big school just like Beacon is. I don't even think you've met every student from here for yourself."

After hearing what Duke said, Celadon and Rua realized that asking Team JADE was a dead end. "Well, thank you for your time," Celadon said to the team as she and Rua left.

"That was a bust," Rua remarked as she crossed her arms.

"Indeed. Perhaps the others had better luck than us," Celadon voiced as the two left, leaving the three bullies of Team JADE to glare at them while Duke finished his meal.

* * *

Around the school and fairgrounds, the rest of Fragment Hunter spoke to anyone they could about Mercury and didn't find anything useful. Team SSSN and Team ABRN didn't have any information they could give, but Sunset Blaze knew of a different source of information that would possibly have answers for her. "Smoke, where are you? I know you're here," Sunset called out as she searched for the Raccoon Faunus thief. Soon, she saw Smoke Shadow approaching her and the two met up behind a large tree in the courtyard. "Pretty straightforward today, huh," Sunset joked as she looked at the Faunus.

"I know something was up with that 'incident', Spitfire. It just didn't feel right," Smoke told Sunset. "Why would she just attack him like that after winning? Why did he go to Mistral instead of a hospital here in Vale? Plus, his name seemed very familiar to me."

"And why would it," Sunset asked.

"Because some time ago, there was something that happened to a known assassin where his house was burned down and he was found dead a good distance away from it," Smoke explained. "That man's name was Marcus Black."

Hearing the last name surprised Sunset as she started to ask herself questions. "You think that this guy is related to Mercury," Sunset asked Smoke.

"Marcus Black was said to have a son," Smoke said. "However, he wasn't exactly a good father. Then again, what kind of assassin is supposed to be one?"

"How bad are we talking about," Sunset questioned.

"Alcoholic, abusive, and very dangerous in battle. People claim that he had the ability to take away somebody's Semblance," Smoke elaborated. "He's somebody you would _never_ want to be around." Sunset recoiled at the description of Marcus Black and the idea of Mercury being raised by the man. "I know. Not a pretty thought," Smoke said. "The reason I know this is because I had Oliver do some digging online after he and Tremor finished some recent projects," he explained as he pulled out a large handgun with a dial on the back of it.

"What's with that," Sunset asked as she inspected the firearm.

Smoke Shadow only grinned before explaining his new weapon. "I called the 'Phantom Magnum'. The dial on the back allows me to mix and match Dust to enhance the shots it fires," he explained. "Thought I needed to have something to help keep up with you and your friends. Especially with everything you were able to do in the tournament."

"Are you sure you should be showing me that thing? Doesn't it ruin the surprise," Sunset asked with a smirk on her face.

"Well, there's a difference between knowing something and experiencing it," Smoke replied. "Anyway, I think you should tell your friends about what I said. It might help you figure something else out."

"Thanks," Sunset said as she left to meet up with the other members of Fragment Hunter. As Smoke watched her leave, he pocketed his Phantom Magnum and went to meet back up with his gang.

* * *

Fragment Hunter gathered together in order to share what little they learned about Mercury Black, but they were shocked to hear what Sunset learned from Smoke Shadow. "Mercury's dad was an assassin," Layla exclaimed in surprise.

"That would explain his skills if he was taught by his father," Rebecca noted.

"No wonder he sounded familiar," Ventus said as he slapped his forehead. "I remember hearing about the death of Marcus Black a while ago. They said that his son wasn't seen after their house was set on fire. It could have been Mercury."

"But if that's all true, then why did Mercury go to Mistral? With his dad dead, where would he go with Emerald," Lapis questioned.

"Back when I heard about it myself, the guy who told me about Marcus said that a woman was looking for him as well," Ventus mentioned. "Maybe she took Mercury in?"

"This is all too strange to piece together," Cereza remarked. "Perhaps we should take a break and keep watching the tournament?"

The group decided that it would be better to clear their minds at the moment and continue watching the tournament. With Pyrrha, Sun, and Penny in the finals, Fragment Hunter still had friends to cheer for. Going their separate ways to check out the next match for themselves, Sunset and Silver walked together in silence until they heard something near the dining hall. Rushing over immediately, Sunset could feel the regretful emotions from somebody as they approached and soon saw Jaune on the ground. "Jaune, what happened," asked Silver as he and Sunset saw a damaged column.

"I don't know," Jaune sadly replied as if he thought he was at fault. "I was just talking with Pyrrha and she..."

"I think I can understand it better if I do this," Sunset said as she used her Semblance to check Jaune's recent memories as she helped him to his feet.

" _Do you believe in destiny,"_ echoed Pyrrha's voice as Sunset saw what happened before. Listening to Jaune and Pyrrha talk, Sunset noticed how Pyrrha was acting during the conversation and realized something was on her mind. When Jaune tried to reassure her that she shouldn't let anything stand in the way of her final goal, Sunset watched as Pyrrha began to cry and accidentally used her Polarity Semblance to push Jaune into the column. _"I'm... I'm sorry,"_ Pyrrha sobbed as she ran away and left Jaune looking at the ground.

"You didn't do anything wrong," Sunset stated as she exited Jaune's mind. "Something's bothering Pyrrha and I think it could do with what happened earlier."

Silver sighed as he thought of everything that's been going on recently. "Things are getting out of hand here," the Wolf Faunus remarked.

* * *

When Fragment Hunter separated, several of them stayed at the fairgrounds to watch the match over food and drinks, some went back to the dorm rooms to speak with Yang, and only a few were in the stands of Amity Colosseum. Sunset, Azalea, Slate, and Pinkie were all at their seats with Azalea's family and the Celeste Sisters joining them. After Sunset shared the news about Jaune and Pyrrha with everyone, Azalea wasn't in the best mood. "I thought that the finals would be fun to watch, but now everything's like a bad day when I was at Sanctuary Academy," Azalea said as she put her head in her hands.

"Maybe something sweet will cheer you up," Pinkie suggested. "I'll go get snacks for us! Be right back," the energetic girl said as she jumped out of her seat and rushed for the closest route to the snack bar, avoiding people as she ran and jumped around the stands. "Watch out! Coming through! Excuse me, sir!"

After Pinkie was out of sight, Azalea only just looked at the floor until Slate caught her attention by putting his arm around her shoulders. "I think that something else could take your mind off of everything," he whispered as he brushed some of Azalea's hair aside. The Faunus girl blushed and smiled as the two stood up. "We should go make sure Pinkie doesn't eat everything on her way back," Slate said to the others as he and Azalea walked away.

"Just be back for the match," Ivy told them with a smile on her lips and shared a knowing look with Terracotta.

Pinkie made her way through the crowd and reached the snack bar to get some cotton candy. Before she could take a bite of it, her whole body shook and she shuddered violently for a brief moment. When she stopped, a feeling of dread washed over her as her eyes widened. "Oh no," she whispered to herself and ran off, leaving the cotton candy behind in her haste. "No. No no no," Pinkie kept saying to herself. Making her way back to the stands, she saw that Slate and Azalea were missing just as the opponents were being chosen for the next match. Running back to where she came and pulling out her Scroll, Pinkie started to call her brother. With no answer, the girl only kept running as she went looking around one of the exit tunnels and soon found Slate and Azalea... making out each other. As Azalea unzipped her jacket, Slate slid his hand up her tank top to feel her breasts until Pinkie split the two apart. "Slate, this is no time to be petting sweater puppies," Pinkie exclaimed in an urgent tone.

"Agh! Pinkie! What's with you? I thought you were getting snacks," Slate questioned as he was annoyed by his sister's actions.

"I was, but then when I got them, I felt something b-b-b-b-b-b-b..." Pinkie explained as Azalea fixed her clothes, but the younger girl shuddered again as she did.

When he saw Pinkie shake like she did, Slate's face immediately changed from annoyed to alarmed. "What did that one feel like," he asked as he grabbed his sister's shoulders. "Was it as bad as the one from last year?"

"Worse," Pinkie answered with a scared voice.

As Slate started to curse under his breath, Azalea was confused. "Slate, what's going on? Why are you concerned with your sister shivering?"

"She's not shivering, Azalea. It's her Semblance," Slate told his girlfriend. "Pinkie has the power to sense things that can happen in the immediate future. But it's also the kind of Semblance that's always active and has uncontrollable surges. When her body twitches or shakes in the right way, she can tell if something is going to fall or a storm is coming. The last time she felt something like this, there was a sandstorm that was hiding a big pack of Grimm inside," Slate explained.

"And that's just a small tingling compared to this," Pinkie added. "Something _huge_ is going to happen in this next fight."

"Who _is_ in the match," Azalea asked. When she looked to see the battle, it was revealed to be between Penny Polendina and Pyrrha Nikos. "Something's going to happen with them?"

"This is serious," Slate said. "We have to tell the others." As the three ran back toward their seats, the battle went on and Penny was giving Pyrrha a hard time. "Sunset," Slate called out as he and the girls reach the stands.

"What's going on? Why are you all panicking," Sunset questioned as she saw the looks on her friends' faces. "Is something wrong?"

Before any of the three could answer, they saw that Pyrrha used her Semblance to knock away Penny's swords. But as they did, something was wrong with Penny as the blades flew by her. "What's wrong with Penny!? Why does it look like she's having a heart attack," Azalea asked as she saw her friend from Atlas looked hurt. Suddenly, Penny's arms and midsection were tangled by the wires attached to her weapons and they began to tear away at her body to reveal something nobody expected. As Penny's body began to rip apart, _everyone_ watched in horror as the girl was sliced apart and her insides were shown to be robotic. " _PENNY!_ " Azalea screamed out the girl's name in terror with tears falling from her eyes.

As Penny's weapons fell to the ground, the audience could only look on with horrified expressions while Port and Oobleck were speaking to the broadcast crew over an earpiece. When the teachers learned that something was wrong, the video feed on the screen gained an ominously bright red tint and an image of a black queen chess piece. Everyone who was watching the Vytal Festival Tournament saw the image and heard a woman's voice.

"This is **not** a tragedy. This was **not** an accident. This is what happens when you hand over your trust, your safety, your _children_ , to men who claim to be our guardians, but are, in reality, nothing more than _men_ ," the voice stated as she spoke to the viewing audience. "Our Academies' Headmasters wield more power than most armies, and one was audacious enough to control both," she remarked as she referred to General James Ironwood of Atlas. "They cling to this power in the name of peace, and yet, what do we have here? One nation's attempt at a synthetic army, mercilessly torn apart by another's star pupil. What need would Atlas have for a soldier disguised as an innocent little girl? I don't think the Grimm can tell the difference," the woman said as she talked about Penny's robotic nature.

As Pyrrha could only hold up a hand in dread and start crying over what she did, Azalea's eyes changed from green to red as she got mad at the woman claiming the fight was caused by the Headmasters. "And what, I ask you, is Ozpin teaching _his_ students? First a dismemberment, now this? Huntsmen and Huntresses should carry themselves with honor and mercy, yet I have witnessed neither," the woman remarked, making Sunset suspicious about the details of Mercury's damage.

" _How does she know if his leg was taken off_ ," Sunset thought to herself before listening more.

At the same time, the woman's comment about the training Huntsmen and Huntresses not having honor or mercy made Terracotta mad. Ventus, Aurora, and Nocturne felt the same way as they glared at the chess piece on the screens, especially when the woman continued speaking. "Perhaps Ozpin felt as though defeating Atlas in the Tournament would help people forget his _colossal_ failure to protect Vale when the Grimm invaded its streets. Or perhaps this was his message to the tyrannical dictator that has occupied an unsuspecting kingdom with armed forces. Honestly, I haven't the slightest clue as to who is right and who is wrong. But I know the existence of peace is fragile, and the leaders of our kingdoms conduct business with iron gloves."

The members of Fragment Hunter outside of the stadium were shocked or angry at what they were listening to. Rua teleported to the stands in order to meet up with Sunset and the others just as the woman spoke more. "As someone who hails from Mistral, I can assure you that the situation there is... _equally_ undesirable. Our Kingdoms are on the brink of war, yet _we_ , the citizens, are left in the dark. So I ask you: When the first shots are fired... who do you think you can trust?" After that final question, the screens changed to static and everyone was still shocked by everything that happened.

"Who does that _**bitch**_ think she is for saying those things," Rua growled as she looked at her friends.

"I think that she's the reason Pinkie felt this coming," Slate replied.

"What," Rua asked.

Before anyone could answer, an alarm went off and the screens became orange with the word 'CAUTION' on them. "Alert. Incoming Grimm attack. Threat level: Nine. Please seek shelter in a calm and orderly fashion," an announcement declared as it warned everyone in Amity Colosseum. Hearing that a Grimm attack was happening after everything, the crowds began to run for their lives in a panic.

"Why do they never listen when that happens," Ivy asked with a hint of fear in her dry tone.

As people tried to flee to the exit tunnels, General Ironwood made his way up to Port and Oobleck in order to speak to everyone with a microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen, please. There is no need for panic," he said in order to try and calm down the crowd, but he was proven wrong when a giant Nevermore landed on the top of the arena's forcefield and screeched loudly as it tried to break the defenses.

"Where'd that Nevermore come from," Azalea asked in alarm.

"The Grimm outside the city were already been riled up from before, so this whole thing must have lured them here," Aurora surmised.

"We need to evacuate and prepare for battle," Nocturne stated.

Sunset and Rua looked at each other before getting ready to teleport everyone. As they did, Sunset saw that Azalea was looking at the battlefield where Pyrrha and Penny's body still were. Sunset placed a hand on Azalea's shoulder and got the Faunus girl to turn around. "We'll come back to help them. We just have to regroup with the others," Sunset told Azalea. Azalea only nodded before the group left the stadium in a flash of light.

* * *

 **And with all of this, we've now gotten to the Battle/Fall of Beacon. I'll admit that it was painful to get to this point because of Penny's death, mostly because I wanted to have some of my characters actually become friends with Penny herself and it hurts them just as much as it does me. But we've also gotten to why** **Pinkie was said to be important when she first showed up. Her Semblance (which was hinted back during her main focus chapter) was something I came up with for her character and thought would make sense for KNOWING the attack would happen. But she's still only a 14-year-old girl, so she couldn't really do anything to stop it.**

 **With these next few chapters, I'm going to be doing quite a few MAJORLY IMPORTANT things for my characters. Especially since we're soon approaching Chapter 50 and I want to do something special for that milestone. Because of what I have planned, I really hope that you stick around to see what happens and meet new characters that will be introduced as both allies and villains.**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	48. Battle of Beacon: Another Story

**Hello, readers. WaterDragonMaverick here with the 48** **th** **chapter of my RWBY Original Character fic, "Sideline: Another Story". When we last left off, the gang did some investigating on Mercury Black after they wondered why he chose not to stick around in Vale. After speaking to students from Haven that didn't have a clue, Smoke Shadow provided some information on Mercury's father, Marcus Black. With more questions than answers, the gang decides to enjoy the rest of the tournament before Pinkie's Semblance warns her of something** _ **bad**_ **that's going to happen. It ends up being true when Pyrrha is tricked into killing Penny and Cinder's speech instigates more negative emotions among the people. With the Fall of Beacon starting, Fragment Hunter decides to do what they signed up for and help out however they can.**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **The only things I own are my own Original Characters**

* * *

The Vytal Festival fairgrounds were in chaos after the match between Pyrrha and Penny ended in disaster. Hordes of Grimm were attacking everyone in a panic, Atlesian Knight robots were defending people, and the members of Fragment Hunter could only look on in horror at everything happening. "Oh my god," Vixen said as she looked at the damage being dealt with wide eyes.

"How did it all come to this," Celadon asked before her Scroll started to ring. "Hello?"

"Celadon, we need a headcount. Who else is with you," Rebecca said as she asked about the locations of Fragment Hunter's members.

Looking at the others, Celadon reported who she was with to her teammate. "Vixen, Silver, Layla, and Vinyl are with me," Celadon told Rebecca.

"Me, Cereza, and Lapis are still at the dorms, but Rua went off to get the others at Amity Colosseum. The White Fang are releasing Grimm into the school," Rebecca informed.

"The White Fang is here," Silver asked as he grabbed Celadon's Scroll. "Why would they even do this?!"

"I don't know, but we have a job to do," Cereza said over Rebecca's Scroll. "We'll contact the others and meet back up at the courtyard."

As Celadon took back her Scroll and hung up, a few cries for help caught everyone's attention. Seeing Creeps, Beowolves, and even and Ursa cornering some bystanders, Layla looked around before noticing a stall that sold rugs. "I have an idea," Layla said to her friends as she held out her hands. Focusing her Semblance on the carpets, she sent several of them into the faces of the Grimm in order to distract them while the others killed the monsters. When the Creatures of Grimm were slain, Layla continued to use her Semblance on a large carpet in order to evacuate the civilians. "We'll get you to safety," Layla told them as she jumped onto the carpet with Celadon and Vinyl. Making the carpet fly, Layla managed to rescue several more people with Celadon and Vinyl blasting any Grimm that flew too close to them.

* * *

Back at the locker room in Beacon Academy, Sunset and Rua teleported everyone in so that they could retrieve their equipment. "Come on, we need to get our stuff and find the others," Sunset instructed as she got her sword.

As Terracotta, Ventus, and the Celeste Sisters got their weapons, the Bull Faunus handed his wife something from the locker he opened. "You'll need this, Ivy," Terracotta said as he gave his wife a dagger to defend herself with. As Ivy secured the dagger and its sheath, everyone heard barking from a familiar dog. "Dante, here," Terracotta said with a commanding voice. When he did, Dante arrived with Diana and Drei next to him before all three stood at attention in front of the Holsteins. "Defend," Terracotta instructed in a booming voice and the dogs nodded.

"Looks like with everything going on, we'll need all the help we can get," Slate remarked as he grabbed his twin revolvers, 'Desperado'.

"Yeah. With things this bad, that's a given," Rua agreed as she placed her shield on her back. Soon, everyone watched as multiple lockers rocketed off. "And we're not the only ones to go fight."

As everyone made sure they had their weapons, Azalea's thoughts returned to Penny and Pyrrha. "I'm going back to the battlefield, even if I have to fly up there," Azalea adamantly said as she made sure she had enough Wind Dust.

"Who says we're stopping you," Sunset voiced as she turned to her friend with her pet gecko on her shoulder. "Come on, we're going back up."

"I'll tell the others what we're doing," Slate said as he pulled out his Scroll to contact the rest of Fragment Hunter, ended up getting a call from Cereza and several other friends. "Guys, we're heading back to Amity Colosseum to help people out there," he said as he answered the call.

"Okay, meet us at the courtyard when you finish up there," Cereza replied before hanging up.

Putting away his Scroll, Slate turned to the others just in time for Rua to teleport the group back to the arena.

* * *

When they reached Amity Colosseum once more, Sunset and Azalea looked at the battlefield to see that Professor Port and Doctor Oobleck were fighting a horde of Griffons that made their way into the arena. "The barrier must have been broken by that Nevermore," Pinkie guessed.

As the two teachers fought the Grimm, Sunset was ready to snipe the closest Griffon when she sensed something. Focusing with her Semblance, Sunset noticed that there were still a few people in the stadium stands. Several of them were scared and the Grimm were able to sense it as well. Seeing one of the Griffons flying off to a hiding girl that got separated from her family, Sunset aimed her weapon's sniper rifle form at the Grimm and fired. The bullet flew toward the Griffon and nailed it in the throat, drawing its attention to Sunset and the members of Fragment Hunter. Before it could attack them, Rua teleported onto the Griffon's back and slashing at the wound to decapitate the Grimm. As it died, Azalea and Ivy approached the girl to calm her down. "It's okay, follow me," Ivy said as she helped the girl get to safety while Azalea and Pinkie helped the other hiding civilians.

When more Griffons attacked Rua, Dante's eyes flashed green and a barrier formed around Rua. The dog soon created platforms and got above the Grimm before creating an axe-like barrier around his tail and flipped in the air to slam the 'weapon' into the monster's face. When the creature hit the ground, Professor Port rushed over and slammed his own weapon's axe blade into the monster to finish it off. With the teacher retrieving his weapon, Terracotta swung his claymore to create a blade of air that cut off one Griffon's wing and made it crash into another few. With the creatures grounded, Nocturne activated her Semblance and used the shadows of the Grimm to impale them while her hair began to shimmer like stars. Continuing her attack, she electrocuted another Griffon with the Lightning Dust in her partisan and held it down for Doctor Oobleck to incinerate the creature with a fireball. "You monsters are no match for the power of a fully trained Huntress," Nocturne declared as she zapped more Griffons.

"Well said, Miss Celeste," agreed Port as he opened fire with his blunderbuss and shot more of the Griffons. With the monsters paying attention to him, they didn't see Ventus Gaia rushing past them and slashing their wings off. As the Griffons fell, Ventus and Slate shot at them with their guns and killed the Grimm before they hit the ground. More Griffons roared as they charged toward Ventus, but the Falcon Faunus flew around the battlefield until he approached Aurora Celeste. As Ventus pulled up, Aurora fired a ray of light using her Semblance to pierce through four Grimm at once and killed them in an instant.

"A wonderous maneuver, sister," Nocturne congratulated as she avoided a few slashes from a Griffon's claws. Dodging another swipe, Nocturne thrust her partisan into the Grimm and electrocuted it. When it evaporated upon death, Nocturne took count of the remaining Griffons and saw that there was only five more. "This is the final stretch, my fellow combatants," Nocturne announced. "We'll soon rid the arena of the Grimm."

"Excellent. We've already defeated twice as many before you came to help us," Oobleck said as he used his weapon to strike another monster with a burning swing. As the monster's feathers ignited, Port swung the axe blade of his blunderbuss into the side of the burning Grimm to kill it.

Arriving from the exit tunnels, Ivy shouted to the fighters about the status of the civilians they rescued. "That was the last person in the stands! We should be safe here when you're done," she called out with Diana by her side.

"Good," Terracotta said as he looked at Drei and held out his open hand. The corgi jumped into the Huntsman's arms and Terracotta threw the dog toward the closest Griffon. When he got close, Drei bit down on the throat of the monster and spun around thanks to Terracotta's throw. While still holding onto the Griffon's neck with his jaws, Drei managed to snap the Grimm's neck and landed into Azalea's open arms.

With a stomp of her foot, Azalea ejected one of her batons from her greave and changed the setting for Ice Dust. Looking at the corgi in her arms, the dog barked once before Azalea tossed the animal into the air and kicked him toward another Griffon. With his Aura protecting him, Drei was coated in enough ice to change him into a spiked ball that impaled the Griffon it hit. Pinkie soon followed through with the attack by grabbing the frozen dog with her yo-yo and swung the ice ball around to strike at one more. As the Grimm was injured, it turned its attention to Pinkie and charged at her. The Grimm wasn't expecting Pinkie to leap onto its back and wrap the string of her yo-yo around its neck. With one swift motion, Pinkie managed to cut off the Griffon's head and use her yo-yo to grab onto the final Grimm. Pulling it down, the Griffon was left wide open to Port and Oobleck striking it at the same time.

"That was a tough battle," Port remarked as he caught his breath. "Are all of you alright," the professor asked as he turned to the members of Fragment Hunter.

"We're okay, Professor," Slate said before he noticed Azalea approaching something. Seeing what it was, everyone had faces of sorrow as Azalea approached the remains of Penny Polendina. Slate approached his girlfriend and teammate alongside Sunset as Azalea fell to her knees and placed her hands on Penny's face.

"We were friends. She was my friend. She was Ruby's friend. I don't care if she was a robot," Azalea said as tears welled up in her eyes.

"Robot or not, I felt her soul. Her emotions. She was a real person to me," Sunset stated as she placed a hand on Azalea's shoulder.

"You said that she looked enough like me to resemble a cousin," Azalea remarked as she remembered the first time she and Sunset met Penny. "She would have fit in back home at Mirabelle. We could have shared a room together." Azalea felt the tears falling from her face as her friends and family tried to comfort her. Smiling at all the support she was receiving, Azalea closed Penny's lifeless eyes and removed the ribbon from her hair. After tying it around her arm, Azalea collected three of Penny's swords and turned to Penny's remains. "When this is all over and I go home, I'm giving you a proper funeral and put these up as a memorial. I feel like you aren't completely gone, but this still feels like something that needs to be done," she said. "You're a part of us all, Penny. It's the least I can do."

Everyone listened to Azalea's speech and even began to cry themselves as Azalea stated what she was going to do. "We raised her right," Terracotta said to Ivy as tears fell down his face. Ivy wiped her face and nodded in agreement.

"Okay, let's get back to the others," Rua said as everyone grouped together and prepared to teleport. "Hold on, gang."

* * *

The rest of Fragment Hunter was fending off the Grimm, but soon encountered members of the White Fang as well. "Attack," one of the masked Faunus yelled as several soldiers rushed at the group. Silver was quick to retaliate by wrapping them up with his weapon's chain and revving the engine to harm them. As the soldiers were thrown around, Lapis used the Dust in her trident to freeze them solid while the members of Fragment Hunter progressed forward.

"Let's keep moving," Cereza instructed as she led the group. As they passed by some Atlesian Knights that were shooting at some Grimm, the visors and LEDs of the robots turned to a dark crimson before they turned around to open fire on the teenagers. "What the bloody hell has gotten into those things," Cereza questioned as she dodged the bullets and retaliated by activating her Time Mirage Semblance. Striking at the robots while time slowed around her, Cereza took off their heads and kicked the bodies of cybernetic soldiers into nearby Grimm.

When an Ursa saw the robot land at its feet, the bear-like Grimm tore the robot apart before roaring at the members of Fragment Hunter. Before any of them could attack the Grimm, a spike went flying at impaled it in the mouth. As the monster staggered in pain, gunshots were heard and several bullets flew straight into its chest. As the Grimm evaporated upon death, Fragment Hunter turned to see that Team PRDT came to help them out. "Why don't you take us on," shouted Percival Ivory as he extended his natural Faunus claws and attacked the closest Atlesian Knight, ripping its limbs off before headbutting it in the visor to break it.

At the same time, Percival's teammates fired their guns at any weak Grimm that approached them. When more members of the White Fang ran toward the group, a blur zoomed by them and they slipped on a patch of ice. After they picked themselves up, Oren Maxwell slammed his robotic arm's hammer form into them and sent the Faunus flying. "We thought you could use some assistance," Maxwell stated to Fragment Hunter and Team PRDT as Team GLOW appeared before them.

"You thought right," said Rebecca as she threw some shuriken into a Beowolf and killed it. Retrieving her shuriken using her armguards, Rebecca threw more at an Atlesian Knight to electrocute it. As the robot was shocked, Garnet Pepper shot it before turning around to fire at a Griffon that flew in. Taking off the Grimm's head, Garnet ran over to Celadon as she took out several White Fang soldiers with her Semblance. Teaming up, the two fired multiple projectiles at the Atlesian Knights to defeat them while the rest of the group defeated their opponents.

"We need to move. There's plenty of people still trapped on rooftops, soldiers are struggling against all the Grimm, and somebody associated with that woman on the microphone has hacked the Knights," Garnet stated. "Some of them are also piloting new Atlesian Paladins, so it's going to be a challenge to stop them."

"There's nearly 20 of us," Percival reminded. "I'm sure that when Azalea and the rest get here, we can handle them." Just as he said that, everyone from Amity Colosseum appeared in front of them. "See? We can keep fighting now."

"What's the situation," Terracotta asked as he turned to Fragment Hunter and the visiting teams.

"Hacked robots, White Fang soldiers, and a ton of Grimm attacking the school and city," Jennifer Dawn replied.

After hearing the information, Sunset stepped forward and began instructing the large group. "Team GLOW, Pinkie, Cereza, Layla, and Vinyl will focus on rescuing people. You can take them to safety and if you find anybody that was hurt, bring them to Ivy. Team PRDT will help me, Azalea, and Slate with the military so that we can keep the larger Grimm back. Team SLVR, Rebecca, and Celadon will handle the White Fang here at Beacon," Sunset stated.

"What about us," asked another voice and everyone's attention turned to Smoke Shadow in his thieving attire. Standing next to him were Kun Agate (aka Tremor), Veronica Moonstone (aka Rouge), and another person wearing a suit of mechanical body armor. "Pretty sure you can use _all_ the help you can get."

"Aren't you criminals yourselves," Lucy Diamond questioned as she remembered what Fragment Hunter told her before at Bianca Coloratura's concert.

"We're _thieves_ ," Smoke said. "This sort of thing is a little too much for a heist we would pull off."

"Exactly," said the person in the armor. "Whoever went through this has been planning it for weeks, maybe even months. And they've obviously had help from another source if they could hack into the CCT for that monologue as well as infecting those Atlesian Knights with a virus."

As the armored person explained what they knew, Garnet looked at the armor suspiciously. "Where did you get this thing," the leader of Team GLOW asked as he saw the details of the armor.

"Atlas Tech body armor. I made it from the remains of a broken Atlesian Paladin that the White Fang had stolen," the person stated. "Apparently, there was some commotion near a nightclub and reports said it was chasing some students down the highway. When we looked into it for ourselves, the mech was broken to pieces."

"That's property of the Atlas Military," Oren Maxwell stated as Team GLOW looked at the criminal.

Opening the visor of their armor, the person inside was revealed to be Oliver Electrum. "You wouldn't hit a guy wearing glasses, would you," he meekly asked as he backed away from the team from Atlas.

"Guys, it doesn't matter at the moment," Azalea said as she separated Team GLOW from Smoke Shadow's gang. "We have a job to do and if they're going to help us, I say we let them," she declared with resolution.

"You've changed a lot from when we first met, Tiny," Tremor remarked with a grin and put his hand on Azalea's head, which prompted Slate to glare at the boxer.

Thinking about what Smoke Shadow's gang could do, Sunset gave them instructions. "You four do what you can. I'm sure you can find some way to help." As Smoke's gang agreed, Sunset turned back to everyone else. "Move out, everyone," Sunset ordered and the group divided to do what they were tasked with while the Huntsmen and Huntresses went their own way.

* * *

In the city, Atlas soldiers were having difficulty fighting a Death Stalker as its thick armor was deflecting their gunfire. The scorpion-like Grimm hissed as it attacked with its pincers and knocked a few soldiers back. A few other Grimm approached the downed men and were ready to attack when new gunshots sounded out and took out the unarmored Grimm. The soldiers turned to see that Slate Quartz, Veronica Moonstone, and Sunset Blaze had shot down the Beowolves that approached them. The Death Stalker hissed again before it tried to strike the newcomers with its stinger. After dodging the attack, Tremor used his weapon and Semblance to create a large drill-shaped field around his arm before punching the Grimm in the face. As the drill pierced through the armor, the Death Stalker sounded out a cry of pain before evaporating. "Yeah, take that," Tremor shouted as the large Grimm died and he changed targets to an Ursa that was charging at him.

A few Atlesian Knights came near the group and the soldiers prepared their guns before watching one suddenly lose its arm. After that, two more lost their limbs before several lasers blasted each of the downed robots to finish them off. When the robots were defeated, an invisible Azalea revealed herself with two of Penny's swords in her hands. Soon, a Griffon came flying in and shrugged off the bullets being shot at it by the Atlesian military. Swinging around with a yell, Azalea cut into the Grimm with the swords and gave a new opening for the soldiers to shoot at. With bullets filling the Griffon's wound, the monster soon died and the troop of soldiers moved forward. "Keep pushing them back," one of the soldiers shouted to everyone before an Ursa Major jumped down from a rooftop and slashed at some of the soldiers.

The Grimm roared after killing or injuring the men and started charging toward the closest person, which happened to be Smoke Shadow. The Raccoon Faunus only smirked as he turned to Sunset and pulled out the weapon that he showed her before. "I guess this is a good time to show you what I was talking about, Firefly," Smoke remarked just as the Ursa Major got near him. Using his Semblance to avoid getting hit, the Grimm was confused about what happened while Smoke quickly dialed a combination into his gun. "Let's go with Fire Dust to start," Smoke said to Sunset as he entered the combination and fired the gun at the Grimm. As he pulled the trigger, an explosive fireball shot out from the barrel and incinerated the Grimm in one shot. Sunset, Azalea, and Slate were amazed by the power Smoke Shadow's Phantom Magnum as the thief then fired more shots at some approaching Nevermore Grimm. "Impressive, right?"

"I'll say," Slate voiced.

"Just keep it up," Sunset told the tailed Faunus.

Flying past the group, Oliver Electrum was shooting down Beowolves and Creeps from the air using lasers and small missiles. Each attack was effective and helped take out the remaining Grimm in the area, which Oliver noticed thanks to a display in his helmet's visor. "Okay, this place is clear. We should move onto somewhere else," Oliver told the group.

"Got it, little buddy," Tremor said as he gave a thumbs-up and the fighters moved on.

* * *

Civilians who were fleeing the chaos were trying to get attention from anybody as they stood on the rooftops and some Grimm began to climb the side of the building they were on. Luckily for some of them, Layla Carbuncle and Vinyl Aurum were able to make their way over. "Get on," Layla said as she used her Semblance to make a large rug fly at her command. As the bystanders got on the carpet, Vinyl blasted any Grimm that got too close while Team GLOW worked with Cereza and Pinkie to deal with Grimm attacking civilians on the ground. After evacuating the people to a safe area, Layla groaned as she held her head. "There's just too many," Layla bemoaned as the carpet she was on started to fall. Acting fast, Vinyl created a hard light platform for the two to stand on. "I can't keep up with everything," Layla said.

"We have to keep at it," Vinyl said as Lucy Diamond and Pinkie swung by using their weapons and saved a few more people from the rooftops. Moving her sunglasses to show her eyes, Vinyl looked at Layla. "We signed up for this job, so we have to do it," she stated.

Layla only smiled as she looked back at Vinyl and the two headed off for another area. Making their way to an area that had people trapped by hacked Atlesian Knights and more Grimm. Jumping down to attack, the two girls slashed at their enemies with their blades and managed to deal with the Atlesian Knights before things took a turn for the worse. After focusing on rescuing so many people, Layla's Semblance had drained her Aura and a Boarbatusk was able to break her Aura by tackling into her. Vinyl tried to defend Layla by using her hard light disks as shields, but she couldn't stop every attack and kill the Grimm. While she took damage, Vinyl was able to defeat the monsters and created another platform for her and Layla to ride on. "Thanks, Vinyl," Layla said as she held her aching head.

As the two made their way back to Beacon Academy, they were bruised and beaten down from everything they were doing before. Thinking it was safe to catch their breath and wait for their Auras to recharge, Vinyl was proven wrong when they saw a large number of White Fang members surrounding them after a few seconds. Counting nearly 30 armed Faunus soldiers, Vinyl was ready to defend the two of them when her Rhythm Scratch failed on her. "Crap," Vinyl said as she saw the White Fang getting ready to fire.

"You humans are going to die here," said one of the soldiers. "Any last words?"

Layla and Vinyl only glared at them in defiance before the group prepared to fire their guns at them. Just as the soldiers were pulling the triggers, a new male voice sounded out as the bullets began to fire. "Connect." With a single word, a glyph with an emblem that looked like a naginata passing through an oval-shaped portal appeared and a cloud of smoke filled the area. After opening fire at the smoke cloud, the White Fang waited to see if their targets survived. When the air cleared, the soldiers and the two Huntresses-in-training were surprised to see the latter unharmed while somebody stood in front of them with a shield. "You two okay," the newcomer asked as he looked back at Vinyl and Layla. They only nodded and Vinyl seemed to smile as if she recognized the man in front of her.

The White Fang members looked at the man to see that he was toned and muscular, stood at 6'2", and was wearing a suit of samurai armor. The armor consisted of a bodysuit with a belt, a helmet that covered his face, a chestplate, a set of guards on his shoulders and shins, and a pair of boots. With another glyph appearing on the shield he carried, the man made the item vanish as he looked at the White Fang. "Who the hell are you," a Faunus with tusks asked as they glared at the samurai.

"I don't exactly have to say my name to somebody I'm going to beat," the samurai said as he held out his hands. "Connect." When he said that word again, a pair of swords appeared in his open hands. The first was a simple blade, but the other was a katana that had a pistol built into the handle. The White Fang with swords and axes charged at the man, only to have their attacks blocked and get kicked away. With a swing of his swords, he knocked several Faunus aside and shot at some of them with the gun in his katana. Placing the handles of his weapons together, the samurai formed the swords into a naginata and ran toward the soldiers. With swings of his new weapon, the masked fight was able to easily defeat several of the Faunus extremists. Turning to see some of the soldiers heading for Vinyl and Layla, the man held out his hand and created a glyph just before the Faunus could attack the girls. Instead of hitting one of them, a second glyph appeared and the White Fang member ended up appearing near the samurai. While the soldier was confused, they were grabbed and thrown into the portal again to crash into the second Faunus.

While the members of the White Fang were questioning what was happening, the samurai made a new glyph in front of him and reaching inside it to pull out a flail. Twirling the weapon around, he hit several soldiers in order to group them up and wrapped the flail's chain around them. As the Faunus were all tied up, Vinyl saw her chance and used her Semblance to attack all of the White Fang members. With a large energy blast knocking the Faunus out cold, the samurai turned to Vinyl as Layla stood back up. "You've definitely gotten better since we last met, Vinyl," the man said as he began to remove his helmet. When he did, his face was revealed have a light complexion, he had short golden blond hair with silver highlights, and the same cerise-colored eyes as Vinyl.

"Hey, Gin. Nice to see you, big brother," Vinyl greeted.

* * *

In another area of Beacon Academy, Team SLVR was fighting the White Fang alongside Rebecca and Celadon. The six were able to fight through many soldiers as well as rouge Atlesian Knights as they made their way through the campus. "Just how many of these guys are there," Vixen asked as she used her fans to deflect bullets fired at her before Celadon used her spear's whip form to knock away several White Fang members. Focusing her Semblance, Celadon fired gemstone-like projectiles at the Atlesian Knights that were about to attack Silver and Lapis from behind. As the teenagers pressed on, they saw that several walls were broken and the school was being ruined by the battle.

"This is madness," Celadon remarked as she stepped inside the school from a broken wall. "Why would anybody want to attack the school?"

"If the White Fang are involved, then it means that some members have gone too far off the deep end," Silver stated with bared teeth. "Sienna Khan first encouraged violence when necessary, but some members have taken the wrong way. Those Faunus will strike down anybody they think will stand in their way, even peaceful members of the White Fang."

"I know this is a sensitive subject for you, Silver. Right now, we have to deal with them," Rebecca said.

Silver growled before he took a deep breath and calmed down. After he did, his Scroll began to ring and he checked who it was. "Bianca? She must be worried about us," Silver said before he answered the call. "Bianca. Are you alright? Where are you?"

"I was watching the finals in my hotel room when that th-thing happened, then I heard that woman's speech. I would come over and help all of you guys, but I think this is way bigger than that breach from before," Bianca told the Wolf Faunus. "I'm seeing ships getting shot out of the sky and a ton of Grimm coming from the southeast. Silver... I'm scared," the Dove Faunus added.

Silver listened to the singer and could tell from her voice that she _was_ afraid. "Me, Azalea, and the rest of us will come back alive. I promise," Silver reassured. "Just stay where you are and be safe. Try calling Azalea now and tell her how you're doing."

Bianca smiled as she heard Silver keep his word. "Thanks, Silver. You be safe, too."

Ending the call between the two, Silver put away his Scroll just as the ground started to rumble. "What's happening now," the Wolf Faunus asked.

The rumbling soon stopped and a roar was heard approaching the city. Everyone looked off in the distance and saw a titanic dragon-like Grimm flying toward Vale. "Oh, that's not good," Vixen remarked.

"You think," shouted Rua. "That thing's _massive!_ I don't think any of us could take it down by ourselves!"

"Can things get any worse," Silver asked rhetorically. As if the universe heard him, shouts of pain were heard nearby and the six teenagers made their way toward the source. When they saw a ruined lecture hall, Silver's eyes widened in recognition before he glared in anger at who he noticed. "You," he said with a voice filled with venom.

The teenagers watched a wolf-eared Faunus throwing trapped students from Mistral and Atlas aside like a pair of ragdolls before he turned to look at them. The Faunus was 6'5" with a large muscular build, black hair that was styled in a look Vixen and Celadon recognized as an old 'warrior's wolf tail', and wore a Grimm Mask that had red markings that resembled bared fangs. He was also wearing a short-sleeved black shirt, a pair of black gloves, black boots with gray soles, and a pair of black pants with a few straps on the right leg. On his back, the Wolf Faunus had a plate that held a serrated sword that looked like it could be loaded with Dust in an opening. The White Fang officer looked at Silver and growled at the younger Faunus when he recognized him. "The traitor returns," he voiced. "Is that arm still hurting from when I slashed it?"

Rua remembered what Silver said about his past and the scar on his shoulder before she turned to her team leader. "Is this the guy that killed your parents," Rua asked.

Silver nodded as he kept his sight on the Wolf Faunus in front of him. "Yeah, he's the one responsible for their deaths," Silver answered. "Sable Eisenbrand."

* * *

 **I think this is a good point to end the chapter. We've got a lot happening for the characters while they deal with the Fall of Beacon. Let's see how they do in the next few chapters, but I'll say a few things about this chapter for now. First up, I thought that Layla using carpets with her Telekinesis Semblance to help save people would have been super fitting with her inspiration being genies, so flying carpets also make you think of those stories.**

 **Second, the scene at Amity Colosseum after helping Port and Oobleck. Penny's one of my favorites and her death in the show was harsh for everyone. When writing Azalea's speech to her remains, I actually teared up myself. I wanted Azalea to use Penny's swords just like Ruby did, so I had her take them with the intention of putting up a memorial to the robot girl as she said in the scene. The ribbon around her arm was inspired by Final Fantasy 7, where the main characters all wear a ribbon in memory of Aerith. I'm considering having Azalea get a new one of her own after her plans, so what do you all think? Should Azalea keep the ribbon as part of her post-Volume 3 outfit?**

 **Third, Smoke Shadow's gang appearing and their new equipment. Oliver Electrum's armor is inspired by Iron Man and was hinted at during the concert chapter if you were paying attention. I thought that he needed to get involved in the action a little more because of who I based the male members of the thieves on. As for the Phantom Magnum that I mentioned in this chapter and the previous one, look up the Lupin Magnum's gun mode from "Lupinranger VS Patranger" and change the color to something you all think could work.**

 **Fourth, we are now introduced to Gin Aurum, Vinyl's older brother that was actually hinted at back in the first chapter of this story. He was also the one watching the match against Sun and Neptune. For his battle scene, listen to "Just Live More" or "Raise Up Your Flag" from Kamen Rider Gaim (as the main character is my inspiration for him)**

 **Finally, we have an antagonist that I've been planning for a little while, Sable Eisenbrand. For those of you wondering, he's Silver's own personal "Adam Taurus". The one responsible for him leaving the White Fang and a dangerous enemy that has significant authority in the terrorist group. While Adam has the chainsaw-wielding Lieutenant, Sable is more along the rank of a Captain. The reason why I went with that rank, I got inspired by something that I will elaborate on the next chapter, "Thrown to the Wolves".**

 **With all my characters handling so many different things, how will they do now that the Wyvern has revealed itself? How will Silver and company do against Sable? What will happen next time? You'll just have to stick around and read the next chapter to find out more.**

 **Review, like, and follow if you enjoyed this chapter! Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out!**


	49. Thrown To The Wolves

**Hey there, readers. WaterDragonMaverick here with the next chapter of "Sideline: Another Story". Last time, the Battle of Beacon started and everyone is trying to defend Vale from Grimm, the White Fang, and hacked Atlesian Knights. Fragment Hunter has split up in order to do as much as they can and things are starting to get intense. Vinyl's older brother came by to help out, but there are still two new threats to the characters. The newly awakened Wyvern Grimm that is making its way toward Beacon Academy and a White Fang officer that Silver knows, Sable Eisenbrand. How will our heroes deal with these new enemies that are joining the fray? I guess we'll find out soon.**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters**

* * *

The Huntsmen who were defending Vale from the Grimm watched as the gargantuan dragon-like Grimm flew overhead and approached Beacon Academy. They were shocked by the sudden arrival of a Grimm that size and most of them were at a loss for words. "Oh my wife," Terracotta Gaia finally said as he found his voice.

"Don't you mean 'god', Terracotta," Nocturne Celeste asked as she noted what the Bull Faunus said.

"You worship your thing, I worship mine," Terracotta remarked before watching a black and viscous tar-like substance fall from the sky after the flying Grimm passed over them. When the sludge landed, it began to form into new Creatures of Grimm. As Creeps, Beowolves, and Ursai emerged, the Huntsmen and Huntresses fought against them. "Is that Wyvern _making_ more Grimm," Terracotta questioned as he easily slashed an Ursa into pieces.

"Looks like it," Ventus remarked as he dodged another glob of the tar-like ooze and watched more Beowolves form. When the monsters roared, Ventus kicked at them and fired shots from his greaves to kill them. Speeding by with his Semblance, Ventus cut down several Creeps with his knife before kicking an Ursa into the air. As the Grimm came falling down, Nocturne impaled the creature through its back with her partisan and electrocuted it. Focusing her own Semblance, her black hair began to shimmer like stars as nearby shadows began to take the form of horses and trampled the weakened Grimm as they galloped by.

As the shadow horses ran by, they avoided Aurora as she slashed and stabbed several Beowolves. Working together with her sister, Aurora kicked the Creeps that approached her from underground into the stampede. The new Grimm died as they were crushed under the hooves of the shadowy constructs, then Aurora jumped onto one of the horses to continue battling the monsters. As some Beowolves attacked, the horses vanished and Aurora gracefully jumped over the Grimm before landing next to Terracotta. "Just like old times," Aurora said to her old teammate as she held up her rapier, Daybreak.

"Only this time, it's not just a training mission," Terracotta stated as he tightened his grip on his claymore, Sarangay.

* * *

Silver only glared at the other Wolf Faunus as Team SLVR, Rebecca Haze, and Celadon Flynn stood near a ruined lecture hall. "Sable Eisenbrand," Silver growled as he looked at the White Fang officer that was responsible for killing his parents.

"So, the runaway wolf cub of those traitors was here all along," Sable remarked with a slight growl of his own. "I _really_ didn't like it when you managed to escape me."

"Why? Because you couldn't slaughter an innocent kid after murdering his parents," Rua rhetorically asked as she glared at the masked Wolf Faunus.

"It's Faunus like you that give our friends bad names," Celadon stated as she spoke to Sable.

Sable looked at the others that were with Silver and turned back to him. "Not only were you hiding here, but you also associate with these humans as well? Have you no pride as a Faunus," Sable asked as he shook his head at the six teenagers.

"Better than being a psycho who torches villages and kills innocent townspeople," Silver shouted. "Why do you even do this?!"

"Why? Because Brother Adam has been leading us into a new age for all Faunus," Sable exclaimed as he marched around the lecture hall. "We're stronger than humans. We have better senses than them. We are superior! Humans shouldn't be the ones that push us around when we're better than them in so many ways," Sable arrogantly listed.

"You're essentially starting a war by attacking Beacon like this," Lapis stated. "News of something this big will spread like wildfire to everywhere. Atlas, Mistral, Vacuo, even Menagerie."

"Destroying Beacon and attacking people from around the world will just make people hate Faunus and the White Fang even more. But this time, their hate will be justified," Vixen voiced.

"Do you really want to fight in a war you can't win," Rebecca questioned.

Seeing the six teenagers talk back to him, Sable only glared as he raised his serrated sword and pointed it at Silver. "You whelps don't have room to speak to an officer of the White Fang like that," Sable said. "The White Fang's strength can match even the greatest of Huntsmen."

"Really? Because I think the bodies outside say another story," Rua retorted as she pointed a thumb toward the unconscious White Fang soldiers that were scattered all around Beacon's campus.

Sable only showed his teeth in a psychotic smile as he looked at Rua. "Oh, my power is on another level compared to the average soldier, child," Sable stated as he charged toward Rua with blinding speed. Rua managed to block his attack with her shield just in time, but the strength behind the attack still pushed her back slightly. "Every single one of you will fall by my blade," Sable told Rua as sparks came off of both weapons.

* * *

At another area of Beacon Academy's campus, the rest of Fragment Hunter started to regroup with their allies. As they did, they heard mechanical sounds approaching them as a pair of Atlesian Paladin battlesuits arrived and looked affected by the same virus as the Atlesian Knight robots, which confused Smoke Shadow's team. "Hold on, I thought these things needed a pilot to work," Kun Agate questioned as he turned to Oliver for an answer.

"My initial hypothesis is that these newer models can function autonomously when their pilots are incapacitated," Oliver stated before noticing that Tremor was only looking at him cluelessly. "I think they have an autopilot," he repeated in layman's terms, remembering Tremor didn't understand the technical jargon.

Understanding, Tremor nodded while Garnet Pepper gave his own thoughts on the idea. "I'd say that some of the infected AK-200s are piloting them. Either that or members of the White Fang got in them while this was happening. They _have_ stolen a shipment of them in an ambush before."

"Yeah, Team RWBY said they fought a number of them when they figured out their plan to bring Grimm into the city," Cereza remarked as she adjusted her glasses.

"Well, these ones are different from those prototypes," Raduga White said. "We'll be in for a challenge."

"Sounds good to me," Percival Ivory voiced as he cracked his knuckles. Making the first move, he jumped and tried to attack the Paladin with a shout, only to get knocked aside from a punch. "And that, kids, is why you wear a helmet," Percival said in a daze before his teammates helped him regain consciousness. "Alright, let's turn these things to scrap metal," Percival exclaimed when he focused.

The Paladins responded to Percival's declaration by separating and attacking the group. Team PRDT, Cereza, and Slate fired their guns at the one that approached them, but its armor was too tough to be bothered by the attacks and only fired its own weapons at the six. As the group avoided the guns from the mechsuit, Twilight Roseus used her Semblance on one of the damaged Atlesian Knights in order to break it apart and send the shards toward the Paladin. Blasting at the metal shards, the Paladin ran toward the teenagers and punched them away. Before they could get hurt by the mech even more, Raduga sped up to the robot with his skates before stomping his foot. When he did, large crystals of ice began to form and he made his way to the top of the structure before slamming it down onto the Paladin. Raduga's attack managed to work as icicles pierced the armor, several parts of the mecha were frozen solid, and it was moving slower. "Maxie, now," Raduga called out when he started helping Team PRDT up.

Oren Maxwell threw his mechanical arm forward and it shot off of him like a rocket, nailing the Paladin's frozen left arm. As the robotic limb came flying back, Maxwell was about to grab it when the battlesuit kicked him into Garnet Pepper and Lucy Diamond. The cyborg glared at the military weapon before Slate gave him back his arm. "At least I took out its arm," Maxwell said.

With the other Paladin, Sunset was working with Azalea and Team SMKE to try defeating it. "Where are Layla and Vinyl? We could use their help," Sunset asked as she fired a few sniper rounds at the Paladin, hoping to hit the cockpit.

"I think we can manage until they can get here," Smoke remarked as he used his cane to try and tie up the Paladin's legs. When he did, he activated the Dust in his cane to shock the suit in hopes of shorting out its systems. At the same time, he was pulling out his Phantom Magnum to deal more damage when the Paladin fired a shot when he wasn't expecting it. Taking the hit and not being able to use his Phantasm Semblance in time, Smoke was knocked aside and Azalea had to catch him. "Thanks for catching me, my flower," Smoke said while trying to stay suave.

"I have a boyfriend," Azalea bluntly stated to the Raccoon Faunus and dropped him before looking back at Veronica Moonstone attacking the Paladin. "How are we supposed to take that thing on? We don't have Yang's Semblance to take the damage and deal it back twice as hard," the Cow Faunus asked. "That's how Team RWBY said they dealt with it the first time."

"Maybe I can hack into the suit's systems and shut it down," Oliver suggested.

"Go for it, Oliver," Smoke said to his friend. As Oliver used his new body armor to fly over to the Paladin, Tremor grabbed the mecha's arm to keep it from punching anyone. Landing on top of the battlesuit, a cable emerged from the wrist of Oliver's armor and plugged into the back of the Paladin. The mech tried to shake off the armored hacker, but was unable to get him off as he moved to its back. The Paladin managed to escape Tremor's grasp and started to flail around to get Oliver off, but it also started to glitch up as it got hacked. "It's working," Smoke called out.

"Yeah, but this virus isn't like anything I know," Oliver said before the custom program he was using started to fail him. "Oh no!" When the mechanized battlesuit wasn't being hacked into anymore, it jumped back toward the closest building and tried to smash Oliver off of it. Oliver screamed in pain after colliding with the walls of Beacon Academy and lost his grip on the Paladin. When the mechsuit turned around, it punched Oliver in the back to send him flying. As his friends called out his name, Oliver landed in front of Tremor before removing his visor. Everyone who checked on him saw that his glasses were broken and that he had blood on his face. "I can't feel my legs," Oliver moaned as he looked at his friends.

Seeing Oliver injured like he was, Tremor's eyes were filled with pure rage as he turned to the Paladin and whatever was inside it. As he growled in anger, his emotions were so intense that it attracted more Grimm to his location. Before a Griffon could get him, Tremor caught the Grimm's beak and activated his Semblance just as he slammed the monster's head into the ground. The force of the attack and his Semblance was so great that everyone started to lose their balance from the small earthquake. "THAT DOES IT! I'LL FLOSS MY TEETH YOUR **SPINE** ," Tremor shouted at the Paladin and created vibrating fields of energy around his fists. With his Drill Bit Knuckle Dusters spinning, Tremor bellowed loudly as he charged at the mecha. Decking the Paladin with a single punch and an enraged shout, Tremor hit the Paladin with enough force that the machine broke into pieces in an instant, shatter a hole in Beacon Academy's wall, and created another earthquake around the area.

Everyone but Smoke Shadow just gawked with dropped jaws as they witnessed Tremor demolish one of the Paladins that they were having trouble with. The Raccoon Faunus just turned to Sunset and Azalea as they stared at Tremor fighting several Grimm that approached him. "Yeah, I've known him since childhood, so this is something I've seen before. You should see him when the last cookie gets stolen out from under his nose," the thief joked with a smile on his face before turning back to Oliver. "Oliver, come on. It's going to be okay."

While the others were still dumbstruck by the first Paladin's defeat and the damage Tremor did, the dismembered Paladin stood up and began to attack everyone. As Team PRDT and Team GLOW were knocked around, a glyph appeared above the Paladin and caught everyone's attention. As the Paladin's attention was drawn to the glyph, numerous kunai began to fall from it and strike at the battlesuit. Everyone watched as nearly 100 Fire Dust-embedded throwing knives fell onto the damaged Paladin and exploded on impact. As the suit fell to pieces, the glyph vanished and everyone's attention was now on three new arrivals. "Hey, Vinyl said you needed some help," a blond male in samurai armor remarked as he stood next to Vinyl and Layla.

Fragment Hunter and their allies only looked at the newcomer in confusion before Azalea noticed something familiar about him as the trio walked up to the group. "Do I know you from somewhere," Azalea questioned before Vinyl pulled out her Scroll to show the same picture that she first introduced herself to Azalea with. Gasping as she recognized the samurai from the photo, Azalea pointed at him as she spoke up. "You're Vinyl's brother!"

Vinyl nodded as introductions were made to Fragment Hunter and their associates. "I'm Gin Aurum. Former student of Beacon Academy and professional Huntsman. Nice to meet you all," the samurai said.

As everyone said 'hello', Sunset was wondering what the glyph that appeared was. "You wanna explain what the exploding rainstorm of knives was from," the de facto leader of the group asked.

"I call my Semblance, 'Connection'. It allows me to create portals to my own little pocket dimension to store objects like my weapons, extra supplies, and even food. They can stay untouched by time for as long as they stay in there," Gin explained as he activated his Semblance and grabbed an orange from one of his glyphs. "I can also make a few portals that can confuse enemies when they end up bumping into each other or even redirect attacks. Pretty cool, right?" Everyone silently agreed with Gin as he used his Semblance to collect his knives and store them away for later use.

Before the conversation could continue, everyone heard mechanical stomping approach them and watched as a new mechanized battlesuit appeared. "Oh, come on! Not another one," Slate bemoaned.

"This is one of the advanced models," Lucy Diamond stated as she saw the machine. "It's tougher than the other ones we just fought against."

"Well, we'll beat this one or die trying," Ebony Rain said as she and the rest of Team PRDT prepared to fight the newest enemy. Before any of them could open fire on the mecha, Ebony heard something coming at them from above. "What's that," she questioned just in time to see Terracotta and Ventus attack the machine with an elbow drop and axe kick respectively. "Holy crap!"

"Well, that's one way to make an entrance," Smoke Shadow said as he managed to get caught off guard by the arrival of the more experienced Huntsmen.

Ventus flew away from the mechsuit so that Terracotta could have room to fight it for himself. Cracking his knuckles and popping his neck, the Bull Faunus stared down his enemy before rushing for the machine. The Paladin tried to open fire on Terracotta, but the Huntsman avoided every shot that came at him and soon sliced the guns to pieces with his sword. When he got close, Terracotta grabbed the Atlesian Paladin by its legs and lifted it above his head before slamming it back onto the ground. While the mecha was flat on its face, Terra put the robotic suit into an armbar until it stood back up and threw him off. As Terracotta went flying, he planted his sword into the ground and used his Semblance to transfer his weight into the weapon and spun back around to hit the Paladin with a flying dropkick. Changing his weight just before impact, the Paladin was knocked around by Terracotta's attack and failed to stop the Huntsman from using a bear hug to shatter one of its arms.

The others were just watching as Terracotta fought against the battlesuit in hand-to-hand combat. "Is your dad _wrestling_ that Paladin," Raduga White asked as he looked at Azalea, who only nodded as she watched her father attempt to place the machine into a camel clutch.

"Oh yeah, wrestling a giant robot has been a dream of his since we were kids back home in Menagerie," Ventus stated as he stood next to Team FCSA and Team GLOW.

Terracotta was laughing in excitement as he released the Paladin and began to rip off its remaining arm. When the machine's limb was removed, it tried to kick at Terracotta in an attempt to stop him. Unfortunately, the Bull Faunus used his Semblance to shift the weight of the Paladin around and throw it off balance when it attacked. As the enormous machine fell to the floor, Terracotta grabbed his sword and finished the battle by slashing the machine into pieces. When the remains of the battlesuit powered down, Terracotta casually dusted himself off before turning to the others. "Anybody hurt," he asked as he looked around.

"Oliver got injured by one of the Paladins earlier," Tremor replied as he held his friend in his arms.

"The rest of us can manage just fine," Percival remarked as he held his side in pain.

Terracotta saw many members of the group were hurt or low on supplies thanks to the constant fighting, so he turned to look at everyone and spoke in a commanding tone. "We need to regroup. Ivy can heal everyone who needs it, so let's move now," he said and everyone followed him without question.

* * *

Rua tried to force Sable's blade back, causing more sparks to fly off her shield and the sword. As she started to grit her teeth, Sable only laughed arrogantly at her struggling and didn't notice Silver rushing at him until the last second. Silver shouted as he swung his chainsaw at Sable, only for the masked Wolf Faunus to swiftly dodge and jump onto the top of a desk in the lecture hall. "Is that all that you can accomplish," he questioned and didn't bother waiting for an answer as he swung his blade and unleashed a wave of fire at the group. The members of Fragment Hunter dodged as they watched the flames come at them, but saw Sable suddenly appear behind them. "You children will never be able to handle somebody like me," Sable said as he kicked at each of the teenagers and pushed them back.

Silver growled as he looked at the White Fang officer, then turned to see how the others were doing. When each of them prepared their weapons, Silver adjusted his grip on his chainsaw and revved the engine in order to signal he was still ready to fight. Charging at Sable again, Silver went for a slash while Lapis created a gust of wind with the Dust in her trident to speed him up. As Silver moved faster, Sable had to block the attack with his sword. As the weapons clashed, the wind died down and Vixen tried to hit Sable with her fans. The White Fang officer moved out of the way and unleashed another wave of fire to hit the other Faunus. Celadon was quick to act as she used her Semblance to create a large gemstone shield and blocked the flames before firing the barrier at Sable like a projectile. The masked Faunus tried to dodge, but Rua teleported next to the gemstone and knocked it into Sable as he was dodging the initial path of the counterattack. "Ha! Got you," Rua exclaimed as she was confident enough that the attack was successful.

But as the projectile flew toward Sable, his body became mist and gemstone flew through him. "What," Celadon questioned as the stone hit the floor and shattered. Suddenly, Sable appeared and punched Celadon in the stomach. While she was recoiling in pain, the masked Faunus kicked her aside and she crashed into a wall. Seeing her teammate get knocked away, Rebecca threw a handful of shuriken at Sable, only for the White Fang member to deflect each of them with his sword. After the attack was stopped, Sable ran toward Rebecca in order to retaliate against her. Avoiding the swings of his sword, Rebecca maneuvered her way behind Sable and threw a few more shuriken at him. When she did, the Lightning Dust in the throwing stars began to spark and reacted with the Dust in the deflected projectiles. The weapons began to create a web of electricity that trapped Sable where he stood, otherwise he would get shocked in an escape attempt.

The White Fang officer looked at the situation he was in and only turned to the kunoichi. "Clever trick for a human. But this 'prison' of yours can't hold me," he stated and his body turned into mist in order to escape the cage of electricity. As everyone saw what happened, Rebecca was grabbed by her hair and thrown into her own trap. After getting shocked, the shuriken got scattered all around the room and Rebecca groaned in pain. "You won't be able to stop my Semblance," Sable declared.

Team SLVR then sprang into action as Vixen used her fans to send her own fire waves at Sable. At the same time, Lapis used her trident's Wind Dust to increase the size of the flames. Sable saw this and dodged out of the way, prompting Rua and Silver to team up. "Punk Rock," Silver called out, which let Rua know to use her shield as a platform and throw him toward Sable. As Sable got away from the flames, he was caught off guard by Silver and was punched in the face. "How do you like that, you bastard," Silver said as he managed to land a hit on Sable, but backed away to regroup with the others rather than keep talking.

As Sable recovered from the punch, pieces of his mask began to chip off and part of his face was revealed. As he glared at Silver and the others with his scarlet eye exposed, the White Fang officer began to growl. "You'll pay for that," Sable angrily muttered as he ejected the Fire Dust crystal in his weapon and stomped on it. As the used crystal was crushed into an inert powder and ground beneath Sable's heel, he placed a new crystal into his weapon and the blade started to glow a dull orange. When it did, Sable ran toward Silver and tried to slash at him. Rua managed to intercept the attack and block it, but a trail of fire followed the slash and started to heat up her shield. While Sable kept adding heat and pressure to Rua's defenses, Lapis tried to stab Sable from behind with her trident. The masked Faunus countered by transforming into mist again to dodge, but Lapis used the Water Dust in her trident to splash Rua so that her shield would be cooled off and sent water around the burning lecture hall. "Was that pathetic attempt to harm me all you can do," Sable questioned as he reformed his body.

"Nope," Lapis simply said as she spun her trident and activated the Lightning Dust it had. With electricity sparking from the prongs, the other members of Fragment Hunter jumped into the seats. Sable looked in confusion until he noticed that he was standing in a large puddle and Lapis placed the prongs of her trident in the water. With the attack harming him, Sable roared in pain until he could use his Semblance to escape. "But that did," Lapis retorted as she regrouped with the others.

Sable began to breathe heavily and saw more of his mask chipping away. With half of his face exposed, the black-haired Wolf Faunus was becoming increasingly annoyed with the members of Fragment Hunter. Unleashing a wave of flames at the water on the floor, he created a cloud of steam and used his Semblance to blend in with the new cover. The members of Fragment Hunter stayed on their toes as they had no idea where Sable would appear next with the steam surrounding them. Suddenly, Sable materialized behind them and slashed at the teenagers with his fiery sword. Lapis was quick to use her trident's prongs to catch the serrated weapon and defend herself.

When Sable's weapon was caught, Rua changed her shield into twin arm blades and went for a punch to Sable's stomach, but the White Fang member was still quick to use his Semblance and escape into the steam cloud. "This is going to be a pain in the ass. Try getting rid of the steam," Rua said to Lapis. Using the Wind Dust in her trident, Lapis created a gust of wind that forced the steam out of the lecture hall and revealed Sable. "There you are," Rua exclaimed as she jumped toward him for a punch. As Sable slashed at her with his sword, the Huntress-in-training teleported out of the way and surprised the masked Faunus. As she appeared next to him, Rua punched Sable hard enough to send him flying into the teacher's desk and shattering the rest of his mask off.

Seeing the shards of his mask all over the floor, Sable's scarlet eyes glared at all six teenagers. "You brats have finally crossed the line," Sable said as he growled like a feral wolf. Charging at Rua, the black-haired Wolf Faunus started to strike at her with his sword. As Rua changed her blades back into a shield and blocked the attacks, Sable hit the bottom of her shield with his knee and knocked it out of her grip. When it did, Rua attempted to counter by throwing a punch, but Sable was too fast and grabbed her hand. Keeping his grip on her left arm, the White Fang officer swiftly moved behind her and twisted the limb before pulling. Rua shouted in pain as Sable dislocated her arm and kicked her aside into the closest wall.

"Rua," the other teenagers cried out as they saw their friend get injured, then focused on trying to fight Sable. Silver charged forward with his chainsaw to slash at Sable, Rebecca created a smokescreen around the White Fang member, Vixen unleashed several fireballs as she waved her fans around, Lapis created several icicles with her trident, and Celadon used her Semblance to unleash a barrage of gemstone projectiles. When the attacks approached Sable, he only used his own Semblance to become mist and avoid the attacks before reforming behind Vixen. Punching her in the face, Sable knocked the Fox Faunus aside and kicked at Celadon. The blonde managed to use her Semblance to create jewel-like armor before she was hit, weakening the damage she took as she was sent flying. Sable then used his weapon to create a wave of flames that was sent toward Rebecca, but the ninja countered by creating a cloud of smoke that caught and snuffed out the fire. As she did this, Sable ran through the cloud and grabbed at Rebecca to keep her from moving. As she tried to escape, Lapis used her trident to send a gust of wind to blow away the smoke band attacked Sable's arm before he could hurt Rebecca.

Sable dropped the kunoichi and turned to see Lapis with her weapon in front of her. "Annoying blue-haired brat," Sable said as he swung his sword at the girl, who blocked the blade before it came close to her. However, she wasn't expecting another fire attack coming from the sword at close range and had to shield herself from the heat. When she did, Sable grabbed Lapis' arm and used his Semblance to get in front of her. As he reformed, his reflection could be seen in Lapis' eyes before he swung his sword and she was so shocked by what happened that she couldn't use her Aura to defend herself in time. Screaming as her eyes were slashed out, blood dripped down Lapis' face and the others watched what happened in horror. "Now you won't get in my way," Sable stated as Lapis continued to scream and cry in agony.

Absolutely livid at what Sable did, Silver growled as his body glowed. Transforming into his wolf form with his Semblance, Silver only howled before rushing at Sable to attack him with claws and fangs. Sable dodged and was about to attack Silver as he did, but the Huntsman-in-training transformed again and managed to strike Sable with a kick in his werewolf form. The White Fang officer grunted in pain as he was caught off guard by the attack, then watched as Silver transformed back to normal so he could attack him with his chainsaw. Sable acted quickly and briefly turned into mist to avoid the damage, then countered by clashing weapons with Silver.

As sparks started to fly from their weapons and the two Wolf Faunus growled at each other, Rebecca paid attention to Sable's position and everything on the battlefield. At the same time, Rua forced her arm back into place before throwing her shield at Sable. As it flew through the air and transformed into a giant shuriken, Sable noticed and repositioned himself to avoid the weapon. Arrogantly laughing to himself as the weapon missed, Sable didn't see that Rua teleported behind him and used her Semblance to remotely equip her shield by teleporting it into her hands. Charging into him, Rua pushed Sable back enough so that Silver was able to hit the White Fang officer in the chin with a palm strike.

Sable stumbled backward and was about to keep attacking the injured Rua when he felt several stabs in his back and grunted in pain. As he turned around to see what hit him, the members of Fragment Hunter saw all of the shuriken Rebecca used before sticking into his back and watched the ninja retrieve the weapons with her magnetic armguards. As the throwing stars were pulled out of his back, Sable turned to see Rebecca was responsible for his newest injury. Charging toward her, he was once again caught off guard when Lapis used her Semblance to unleash a sonic scream. As he recoiled in pain from his enhanced hearing being affected by Lapis' scream, Celadon used her spear's whip form to catch Sable so that he was left open to a bombardment of gemstones and fireballs that created a cloud of smoke. As the smoke cleared up, Sable's Aura began to flicker to show he was taking a lot of damage from Fragment Hunter. "You brats," Sable exclaimed as he stumbled around in pain. "You really think that you can finish me off?!"

"We don't need to finish you," Silver said as he caught Sable's attention. As the White Fang officer turned around, he saw the rookie Huntsman charge at him in wolf form. Jumping into the air and transforming back, Silver slashed at Sable's face with his chainsaw hard enough to knock him aside and break his Aura enough to leave a bad wound on him. As Sable clutched his bleeding face, Silver and the others regrouped around Lapis. "We only need to make sure you won't follow us. Let's get out of here now, Rua," Silver instructed.

The members of Fragment Hunter teleported away while Sable managed to stand up and glare at where the teenagers were. The black-haired Wolf Faunus did nothing but keep holding onto his face while some soldiers from the White Fang found him. "Sir, we need to leave now. It's an order from Adam himself," a Faunus with lizard scales on his arms said. Sable said nothing and walked away with the other Faunus, but he silently swore that Silver Wuruhi would not see the last of him.

* * *

At the docks outside of Beacon's campus, Professor Port and Doctor Oobleck were overseeing the evacuation of remaining students and civilians to a safe zone in Vale. On another side of the docks, Ivy Dahlia Holstein was using her Semblance to help heal any injured bystanders. After taking care of a woman's injuries, she saw a Beowolf approaching. With a look of determination, Ivy pulled out the knife that Terracotta gave her and waited for the Grimm to get close. As the monster went for a leaping slash, Ivy dodged the swipe of its claws and slashed out the Grimm's throat. A pair of Creeps soon rushed for Ivy, but she avoided them and stabbed them in the eyes in retaliation. Panting heavily as she finished off the Grimm, Ivy soon saw Fragment Hunter and their allies approaching her. "What happened," Ivy asked as she looked at everyone.

"My friend's hurt," Tremor said as he placed Oliver on the ground. "He says he can't move his legs."

"Take off his pants. I need to make skin contact for my Semblance to work," Ivy instructed. As Team SMKE removed the armor off of Oliver, Ivy used her Semblance to make sure the boy could walk again. As energy flowed through him, Oliver woke up to see that he could feel his legs. As the thieves were glad their friend could move, Silver's group teleported in and Rua's pained groans had Ivy start healing her. "What happened to you," the Cow Faunus asked as she placed her hands on Rua's shoulder.

Rua groaned as she explained what happened. "Let's just say that we met the guy who killed Silver's parents and that he's an asshole. Dislocated my arm and slashed out Lapis' eyes," she said before feeling her arm was perfectly okay.

"Now you won't have to worry about it popping out easily," Ivy told Rua. "Now for you, dear," she said as she placed a hand over Lapis' eyes. As Ivy continued to use her Semblance to accelerate everyone's healing, Terracotta noticed that Ivy was exhausting herself and that the glow from her hand was flickering. After a while, Ivy moved her hand and her Aura was shown to be depleted from overusing her Semblance.

"Lapis! Lapis, are you okay," the members of Team SLVR asked as they looked at their friend.

Lapis opened her eyes, but something was wrong. Her vision was blurry and she could barely see anything. "Guys, where are you? I can't see," Lapis questioned as she tried finding her friends.

"Oh, I was afraid of this," Ivy said. "I've never really been good with healing vision with my Semblance _and_ I've exhausted myself with everything. I don't think Lapis will be able to see clearly until we get her to a real doctor."

"D-does this mean I can't be a Huntress," Lapis asked with fear evident in her voice.

"Lapis, you know that isn't true," Silver said. "We just need to get you some help."

"Besides, Fox from Team CFVY was born blind and he's a badass," Rua remarked.

As the members of Fragment Hunter tried to comfort Lapis, Sunset felt a number of emotions around the area and began to investigate with Azalea. Reaching the other students that fought to defend Beacon Academy, the girls saw that Blake Belladonna had bandages around her waist while Yang had lost her right arm. Azalea was shocked to see her old friend crippled like that and Sunset knew that _something_ bad happened if Blake kept apologizing to Yang while the latter was unconscious. Soon, they saw Weiss Schnee and approached her. "Looks like you've all suffered damage, too," Sunset said.

"Some more than others," Weiss sadly commented as she looked down.

"Ruby's still not here," Azalea added. "I don't think she's going to take it well."

"None of us have been," Weiss agreed.

Sensing some other emotions from Weiss, Sunset used her Semblance to enter the heiress' mind and see her recent memories. As she did, most of the ones she found important were involving a woman who looked like she was in her early 20's and resembled Weiss quite a bit. As Sunset paid attention to what she saw, the woman's voice echoed around her. " _Every Schnee has the ability to summon. We have for generations. Your Semblance is like a muscle. The more you practice with it, the stronger it will become,_ " the woman said while the image showed her using a glyph in her hand to summon a Beowolf. Unlike the ones Sunset has been fighting, this one was mostly white and blue, making it look like it was made entirely out of ice and gave off an entirely different feeling when stood by the woman's side.

"She must be Weiss' sister," Sunset remarked to herself before watching Weiss' memories continue. The two Schnee women watched as Weiss attempted to create a new spinning glyph. "How exactly can they summon those Grimm for themselves," Sunset asked before she heard the voice of Weiss' sister, Winter Schnee.

" _Now think to your fallen foes! The ones who forced you to push past where you were, and become who you are now. Think of them, and watch as they come to your side,_ " Winter said as Weiss attempted to focus on the glyph. " _Emotions can grant you strength. But you must never let them overpower you,_ " Winter advised. Sunset thought that she should keep that in mind before the scene changed to earlier in the night.

After watching Velvet Scarlatina of Team CFVY battling two Paladins on her own, Sunset saw Weiss rushing toward the Rabbit Faunus in order to protect her. Sunset could sense all of Weiss' emotions during the moment and saw a larger glyph form near Weiss as she ran. Preparing to block the Paladin's attack, Weiss was protected by the arm of an enemy she previously defeated and Sunset watched as the sword it wielded cut the machine in half. "Whoa... That's badass," Sunset said to herself as the glyph and arm faded away. Exiting Weiss' mind, Sunset spoke to the snow-haired girl about what she saw. "You were surprised that you were able to summon something like that," Sunset stated.

Weiss was surprised by what Sunset said, but remembered her Semblance's abilities. "Yeah. My sister's advice was true," Weiss replied.

The other members of Fragment Hunter called Sunset and Azalea over as they finished speaking to Weiss. When the girls made their way over, they noticed the Wyvern start circling the school. "We need to get going. It's too dangerous to stay here," Terracotta stated as the girls met with the others. Azalea was about to argue with her father, but remembered the enormous Grimm flying over the school and said nothing. "Soldiers have already started establishing a safe zone in the city, so a few of us should go help secure it while the rest of us split up duties here."

"Lapis is still hurt, so we'll stick around to help others onto the ships," Vixen stated as she and Silver turned to the Bull Faunus.

"We should try and get our belongings out of here," Cereza added. "We're not going to let everything we have get destroyed if Grimm are going to take over the school." With her comment, the members of Fragment Hunter and their allies started to figure out each of their next tasks.

* * *

In the city of Vale, civilians were gathered together with the Atlesian military providing protection and aid to everyone. As some soldiers wrapped blankets around people or helping children find their families, Sunset and Azalea teleported in to help out. "We're here to help you guys out," Sunset said as the two girls spoke to one of the soldiers.

"Thanks. We could use it," the soldier told the girls. "We think there are still some people just outside the perimeter we established, but we couldn't confirm because some Ursai attacked us. You can start by going to check for yourselves and bring anybody you find back here," the soldier stated.

"Yes, sir," Azalea replied as she and Sunset went off.

As the two passed by one of the other soldiers, he noticed the ribbon on Azalea's arm and the weapons she was carrying. "Miss, where did you get those," the soldier asked.

Azalea looked at the items she took from Penny's remains and sighed sadly before answering. "From my friend. If she was here, she'd keep fighting and help people. So that's exactly what I'm going to do," Azalea stated as she and Sunset marched off. The soldier only saluted the girl's determination as the two left.

As they made their way through the city, Sunset and Azalea started to get into a conversation about what they saw with the dragon-like Grimm. "That thing flying over Vale and Beacon was _spawning_ Grimm. Did you notice that," Sunset asked.

"Yeah. That tar stuff dripping off of it is freaky," Azalea said as the girls passed by a police station that was damaged in the chaos.

"And the Grimm just form right out of it? Creepy," Sunset remarked. "It's almost as if that Wyvern was some sort of living... uh um... a uh..."

"...Pool of Grimm," Azalea suggested as Sunset was struggling to find the right description to give the Wyvern's Grimm spawning abilities.

Sunset snapped her fingers as she pointed at her friend. "That's it! It's like that sludge is what Grimm are made of. It would explain why they evaporate when they die. They just change from liquid, to solid, to gas in their lifespan."

"It's still disgusting and creepy," Azalea commented.

Before their conversation could continue, Sunset felt something nearby and held out an arm to stop Azalea. Looking around, Sunset focused her Semblance in order to sense what she noticed. Soon, she felt that two people were nearby, but they weren't feeling what she expected from somebody during this sort of situation. "I know you're out there! Come out here where we can see you," Sunset called out. "Especially since you two don't really seem scared of everything happening!"

Azalea was wondering what Sunset meant, but soon heard a pair of footsteps approaching them. To Sunset and Azalea's shock, the two people that the flame-haired girl sensed were not who they were expecting. "What?! I thought you went to Mistral. Why are you two still here," Azalea questioned as she saw the two people.

"That's because they _didn't_ leave," Sunset remarked as she looked forward. Standing in front of the girls were two faces that they believed were not in the Kingdom of Vale because of the earlier incident. Azalea Calla Holstein and Sunset Blaze were face-to-face with Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black.

* * *

 **What a chapter this has been! LOTS of fights here and a few moments that I've been planning for a while. That means I have a LOT to talk about in here as I end the chapter.**

 **First, Sable Eisenbrand's character. I picture his voice being that of Vegeta from TeamFourStar's Dragon Ball Z Abridged. Mostly because Nick Landis (aka Lanipator) has played minor roles in RWBY before, including Yuma from Volume 5. I just feel like Vegeta's voice works well for Sable's arrogant and powerful character. Also, I based his Mist Body Semblance off of the Captain from Hellsing Ultimate, which TeamFourStar ALSO made an Abridged Series of.**

 **Second is the battles with the Atlesian Paladins. With so many fighters against them, I wanted to show off plenty of techniques. Raduga's move with the ice crystals is based on a finishing attack used in Kingdom Hearts 3, Tremor's line when Oliver was hurt was from Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves as I based the three male members of Team SMKE off of the Cooper Gang from the Sly Cooper series, Gin's attack with the exploding rainstorm of kunai is also from his inspiration of Kamen Rider Gaim, and then we have Terracotta's wrestling match with the advanced Paladin. During that scene, try listening to "Short Hair" from Megas XLR for the awesomeness that is a Huntsman with Weight Manipulation wrestling a robotic battlesuit with his bare hands.**

 **Third up is Sable's battle with Team SLVR, Rebecca, and Celadon. I've been wanting to have the damage dealt to Lapis shown for a few reasons. But the most important one at the moment is to show that Sable's a threat and that Fragment Hunter has to keep training even after leaving Beacon. For the battle music for that scene, I have three different options that I think would work well. "I'm My Own Master Now" from Metal Gear Rising Revengeance, "Werewolf Baby" by Rob Zombie, or "Shout In The Moonlight" from Kamen Rider Kiva.**

 **Lastly, we now have the final battle of Volume 3 set up for my OCs. To celebrate a milestone of 50 chapters, Azalea and Sunset will battle Mercury and Emerald! Since we didn't really see them during Cinder's personal mission of obtaining the full powers of the Fall Maiden, I wanted to show my take on what those two were up to during the moments that killed our innocence. I'm going to have a blast writing that battle up, so look forward to it in the future. After Chapter 50, we're entering the period during the time skip before Volume 4. Plenty of original content for me to focus on there, so be prepared for lots to happen there.**

 **How will Fragment Hunter handle the injuries dealt to them? Will they be able to get out of Beacon Academy with their friends? How will the battle with Emerald and Mercury go?**

 **Until next time, WaterDragonMaverick signing out.**


	50. End of the Beginning: Another Story

**Hello, everyone! WaterDragonMaverick here with the newest installment of "Sideline: Another Story". This chapter is a HUGE milestone for me because when I first started writing, I never thought that I would ever write a story that was 50 chapters long. And I'm still going to continue after this because I have so many ideas for my characters!**

 **Last time, Fragment Hunter fought in several intense battles against the White Fang and rogue Atlesian Paladins. After suffering injuries, the gang splits up once again to handle a number of tasks. Azalea and Sunset have gone back into the city of Vale to help the Atlas Military secure their safe zone, but run into two faces they didn't expect to see during this chaos. Standing before the girls are Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black, who was believed to be crippled during the Vytal Festival Tournament finals. How will our heroes handle the final moments of the Fall of Beacon? Stick around to find out!**

 **We're in the endgame.**

 **RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum (R.I.P)**

 **I only own my Original Characters featured in this story**

* * *

Back at Beacon Academy, most of Fragment Hunter had split up after Sunset and Azalea returned to the city. Silver, Vixen, Rebecca, and Lapis stayed behind due to the latter's eye injury and helped the others evacuate to safety alongside the Huntsmen, Ivy, and Azalea's dogs. But Rua went with Cereza, Slate, Layla, Celadon, and Vinyl to retrieve the group's belongings in the dorm rooms. Joining the group with gathering the items were Gin Aurum and Pinkie, mostly because of the latter's Semblance allowing him to store items in a pocket dimension and Slate wanted to protect his little sister. "Look through each room a few times. You'll never know what you missed. And be on the lookout for Grimm that would break in," Cereza instructed as the group reached their dorms.

The teenagers split up and checked the three rooms for what they should take with them. Loading several backpacks and other bags with everyone's clothing, the members of Fragment Hunter also made sure to take several of their other belongings. As they did, Layla looked out of the window and saw Grimm forming from the tar-like liquid that dropped from the Wyvern flying in the sky. Layla rubbed her arm and frowned as she watched more Beowolves appear. "Layla? What's up," Vinyl asked as she saw the girl look upset.

"Is this all we can do," Layla questioned as she looked outside. "We tried to fight off the Grimm, but that thing outside is making more. We tried to fight the White Fang and Lapis lost her eyesight when that Sable guy Silver told us about attacked. Not to mention all of the Atlesian Knights and Paladins going rogue because of a virus," Layla stated as she looked at the floor. "Now we're just packing up and running away. I thought we were supposed to be heroes."

While the other teenagers had no idea what to say to Layla as she expressed her doubts, Gin Aurum sighed before speaking to her. "Life isn't always like a fairy tale. It can be harsh and take no prisoners. A while after my team and I graduated Beacon, we went on a mission that ended in disaster," Gin said as he began to tell Layla and the others a little story. "There was a horde of Grimm that injured my friends badly. I was able to drag them to the closest village and I passed out after the locals got a doctor. While I was out, my team all died from their injuries despite the doctors working to help them. Their final words were that they were proud of me for doing my best to save them. Ever since then, I've been pushing forward to do my job as a Huntsman. It doesn't matter what life throws at me and if I see people die before my eyes. I'm going to help people because _somebody_ has to," Gin stated.

Vinyl looked on as the others were captivated by her brother's story and only nodded before she went to get everyone's instruments. Tossing the items to Gin, the samurai activated his Semblance and stored the larger items in his pocket dimension for safekeeping. After the instruments and other equipment were stored away, Celadon started opening the wardrobes for Team SAFR. "Let's make sure to bring as many outfits that Bianca gave us as possible. We wouldn't want them to go to waste," Celadon said, prompting Rua to roll her eyes at the girl's focus on looks.

In Team FCSA's room, Slate and Pinkie finished packing Azalea's clothes for her when the gunslinger's attention focused on a certain item in the room. Looking at the music box that Valencia Stonehaven gave Azalea, Slate opened it and the box's song began to play. "Azalea will definitely want this," Slate remarked as he listened to the music. Closing the box when the song ended, Slate put the item in his pocket before gathering more items. "I hope she and Sunset are doing fine with the safe zone security."

* * *

In the city of Vale, Sunset and Azalea were staring down Emerald and Mercury as they stood in the middle of the empty street. "You two didn't leave for Mistral because this was all you're doing, wasn't it," Sunset questioned as she pointed an accusatory finger at the duo. "You two aren't panicking or even helping fight. Not to mention what we heard about you, Mercury."

"And just would that be," Mercury asked as he feigned ignorance.

"That your father's Marcus Black," Sunset stated and got a reaction out of Mercury when he glared at her. "With training from somebody whose job is to kill people, you would have been able to win the tournament easily. But you lose in the finals and somehow get Yang to break your leg, which seems perfectly fine to me."

"Modern medicine's a miracle, don't you think," Mercury retorted with a smug smile and a shrug of his shoulders.

"So's the fact that I can sleep peacefully through my parent's anniversary night," Azalea snarked with a deadpan tone as she crossed her arms and didn't believe Mercury's words. "What I'm wondering is _how_ you got Yang to injure you like that. I've known Yang since I was a kid. She's not the type to kick somebody while they're down."

"Sorry, but we're not going to tell you anything," Emerald said as she looked at Azalea. When she did, Azalea soon heard something coming from behind her and turned to see Team JADE behind her. Before Azalea could say anything to her former bullies, Mercury hit her with a flying kick that knocked her to the ground. When Azalea picked herself up, Team JADE was nowhere to be found and she was confused until Emerald used her guns to fire at the Cow Faunus.

Azalea stood back up while Sunset got in front of her friend and used her sword to deflect the bullets. The two girls then charged at the duo in front of them while Emerald unfolded the blades on her guns. Before Sunset or Azalea could attack Emerald, Mercury appeared in front of them and swiftly kicked them in their faces. As they were stunned by the attack, Emerald used the chains of her weapons to grab the girls and throw them onto the ground. As the girls recovered from the attack, Azalea slammed her baton on the ground to send shards of rock at her opponents using Earth Dust. Emerald and Mercury dodged the stones that came at them, as well as bullets Sunset fired from her sword's rifle form by hiding behind several cars that were parked along the road. "You're going to have to try better than that," Mercury said as he jumped into the air and landed between the girls. Delivering a flurry of acrobatic kicks to them with his steel-clad boots, Mercury knocked Azalea and Sunset around once again.

As Azalea managed to block one of his kicks with her vambraces, Sunset was grabbed by Emerald's chains and pulled away from the Cow Faunus. "Sunset," Azalea called out before she saw Mercury leap into the air and bring down his right heel toward her face. Seeing what he was doing, Azalea rolled forward and dodged the attack in time. When Mercury's attack failed, he spun around to hit Azalea with a new roundhouse kick. After Azalea was struck, Mercury continued to kick at her before she forced one of his attacks back and managed to punch him in the stomach as he regained his balance. As Mercury recoiled from the attack, Azalea elbowed him in the ribs before backhanding the young male in the face. Mercury quickly recovered and saw Azalea used her Multi-Action Dust Batons to attack him with sharp pieces of ice and stone. When the shards came flying at him, Mercury only jumped forward and curled into a ball so that his legs would take most of the blows. " _Why is he doing that if his combat style focuses on attacking with his legs,_ " Azalea thought to herself before Mercury made it throw her storm of shrapnel.

Landing in front of Azalea, Mercury grabbed at her wrist so she couldn't attack with her baton and started to kick at her again. Azalea countered by waiting until he was in range and hit him in the face with a headbutt. As the gray-haired boy grabbed his face in pain, Azalea struck at him with her batons as they sparked with electricity. Taking several hits to start, Mercury began to counter and deflect the weapons before they hit him. Backflipping away from Azalea before she could land another hit, Mercury fired a pair of rounds from the guns on his boots. Blocking the shots with her vambraces, Azalea remembered when Mercury was fighting in the tournament and used the same attack on Coco and Yatsuhashi. As she was distracted, Mercury jumped onto a nearby car so that he could reach the roof of a building. When he was high enough, he jumped off and fell down toward Azalea while spinning and firing a large number of Wind Dust bullets from his boots. Azalea was quick enough to place her batons back into her greave and block Mercury's landing kick with her vambraces. Firing a shot from his boots, Mercury managed to break Azalea's guard and bounce off of her with a backflip while the projectiles began to rain down on the Cow Faunus. As the smoke from the attack covered Azalea, Mercury smiled with a smug expression on his face before he saw the horned girl was unharmed when the smoke cleared up. "What the hell," he exclaimed as he was confused by what happened before Azalea grabbed him by the waist and slammed him to the ground. When he got back up with a flipping jump, Mercury began to stay on the defensive until he could figure out why his barrage of Wind Dust failed to harm the Faunus girl.

While Mercury and Azalea were battling, Sunset faced off against Emerald after being separated from her friend. Emerald fired one of her guns at Sunset while leaving one of them unfolded as a sickle, prompting the fiery-haired girl to block the shots with her sword. After she did and the gunfire stopped, Sunset saw that Emerald was nowhere to be seen. "Where are you," Sunset questioned as she talked to herself and looked around the area. As she did, she watched several Beowolves approach the battle and prepared to fight them off until she noticed something was strange about them, but couldn't tell what it was to start. While Sunset was distracted by the strange Grimm, Emerald snuck up behind her and prepared to hit the girl. Suddenly, Sunset turned around and swung her sword at the green-haired girl just before she could attack. "Found you," Sunset said as she watched Emerald dodge the attack.

Going on the offensive, Sunset ran toward Emerald so that she could slash at the girl. As she kept swinging her weapon, Sunset watched as Emerald blocked the blade with her own weapons and managed to wrap a chain around the sword. Sunset was quick to act before she was disarmed and tried to strike Emerald in the head with the pommel of her sword, but the girl was too quick and pulled the weapon away. As the sword flew through the air and landed in a nearby car door, Emerald started to slash at Sunset with her weapon's sickle form. Sunset dodged or deflected several of Emerald's attempts to hurt her until she saw the girl start to multiply. As several copies of Emerald appeared, Sunset felt that the new ones were a little unusual to her. As the Emeralds circled around her, Sunset tried to focus and as one of the copies came at her from the left, she grabbed the girl and activated her Semblance.

* * *

Searching through Emerald's mind and memories, Sunset saw several things that caught her attention. " _I know my fair share of liars and thieves. Stealing is an art of patience, coordination, and in a pinch, sleight of hand,_ " a voice echoed as Sunset watched a memory of Emerald stealing a ring and encountering a woman that sounded familiar. " _But you didn't steal the ring in your pocket. You took it right before the jeweler's eyes. And he smiled,_ " the woman said as she explained what she witnessed before cornering Emerald in the alley they were in. Sunset recognized the voice of the woman as the same that spoke after Penny's death. The memories then changed to an intense battle that Emerald watched from a distance, showing Mercury Black killing his own abusive father at the cost of his legs being badly damaged. " _Mercury... Tell me, are you anything like your father,_ " the woman asked as Mercury showed his father's corpse to the women after they said they were looking for an assassin.

As the memories went by, Sunset saw that Emerald and Mercury were involved with a lot of things while they worked with the woman in red, who Sunset learned was the same Cinder that joined the two as students at Haven. Images of Roman Torchwick and the White Fang went past Sunset before she watched another battle against a young woman. As she did, Sunset saw several things that surprised her greatly. Emerald was able to make the woman see something that wasn't really there, Mercury's legs were replaced with prosthetics after his battle with Marcus Black, and the young woman had incredible power she couldn't believe at first. As the fight went on and Emerald was about to be killed by the woman for ambushing her, an arrow was shot into her back and the younger criminals kept her steady as the Cinder did something that scared both the woman and Sunset. After Cinder put on a glove, a small bug that resembled a Creature of Grimm appeared in the palm, prompting the woman to speak in a pleading whisper. " _Please don't..._ "

Sunset watched in horror as the bug spat a black substance onto the girl's face and everything played out like an inhumane ritual. Sunset watched as the woman's life was being drained and transferred to Cinder, with their eyes glowing with energy that faded from the other woman. "What the hell is with these guys," Sunset questioned before hearing footsteps rushing toward the ritual and a large blade severed the black web-like substance. When the material was cut, the villains jumped back and Sunset saw that the woman was grabbed by a man she recognized a little. "Is that... Ruby and Yang's uncle," Sunset asked herself as she remembered not only seeing the man around Beacon recently, but also in a few of Team RWBY's memories.

After watching the trio of bad guys escape, Sunset watched as the three slaughtered the White Fang camp in Forever Fall in order to get them to join in Cinder's plans. Sunset witnessed several other details go by such as a discussion of the Breach being too early, rigging matches in the tournament, gathering information on students, and even learning of Penny's robotic nature for themselves. As the most recent memories of the Vytal Festival Tournament's finals showed up, Sunset was shocked to see that Emerald was the reason for Yang 'breaking' Mercury's leg by making a hallucination of the fighter attacking Yang after the match was over. With Yang framed and the public's opinion of the match causing Grimm to gather, Sunset's anger began to build as she watched Mercury fix his prosthetics and the last round of the finals appeared. Sunset watched as Emerald was in the audience and concentrated on the right moment for Pyrrha to be tricked into killing Penny. As Sunset witnessed the events unfold once again, she soon felt something hit her and she was forced out of Emerald's mind.

* * *

Back in the streets of Vale, Mercury leaped at Sunset with a flying kick and knocked her away from Emerald. After getting pushed back, Mercury jumped into the air and brought his right heel down on Sunset's face while she was distracted, then kicked her in the stomach to knock her to the ground. As Sunset coughed from the attack, she managed to get back up to see Mercury checking up on Emerald. "Sunset, are you okay," Azalea asked as she managed to reach her friend.

When she stood up, Sunset began to laugh to everyone's confusion. "What's so funny," Emerald questioned as she looked at the flame-haired girl.

Sunset just continued laughing until she controlled herself and looked at her opponents. "I'm just laughing because I'm so mad at you two," Sunset replied with a chuckle still in her voice. "I'm so mad that I'm actually calm and know just how to deal with you," she stated in a serious tone.

"How exactly? You might as well be ashes in the wind when battling us," Mercury remarked.

Sunset only snickered again before she pointed a finger at Emerald and Mercury and spoke to them. "Don't you know there's a mythical bird that can rise back up from its own ashes when it dies," Sunset said as the sleeves of her jacket began to glow with the Fire Dust she had in it. When a pair of flaming wings appeared on Sunset's back, a spiral of flames appeared beneath Emerald and Mercury. With a snap of her fingers, Sunset created a fiery explosion that sounded like the cry of a bird. Just before the attack, Mercury shoved Emerald out of the way and crouched into a ball as the blast enveloped him. When the flames died down, Mercury's pants were damaged enough to reveal his robotic legs to Azalea.

"Wh-what," Azalea voiced as she saw Mercury's legs.

"He's like Oren Maxwell," Sunset told her friend. "His legs are prosthetics because he lost his real ones. I looked in Emerald's mind and _they're_ the ones responsible for all of this. The matches were rigged, Emerald used her Semblance to make several people hallucinate during the tournament, Yang was framed to get the Grimm riled up, and they're the reason that Penny's dead," Sunset explained.

"Like anybody actually cared about that girl. She was just a puppet," Mercury said with a cruel smile on his face and a chuckle in his voice. "A puppet that Atlas made and we used against them."

As Mercury laughed and antagonized the girls over Penny's true robotic nature, Sunset could feel the pure rage coming from Azalea as her eyes turned into a bright ruby color and she rushed at the laughing boy. **"YOUR METAL DICK IS MINE, MOTHERFUCKER,"** Azalea screamed at the top of her lungs as she prepared to clash with the assassin. Before she could, Mercury seemed to vanish from her sight and as she looked around, Azalea saw armed members of the White Fang charging into the battle. "Oh, don't _you_ start with me now," Azalea shouted as she started to glow with her Semblance. Unleashing a flash of light, Azalea soon saw the extremists vanish while Emerald and Mercury covered their eyes. "There you are," Azalea exclaimed as she ran toward Mercury and threw him at Emerald. After the two crashed into each other, Azalea turned invisible and pulled out two of Penny's swords and shifted them into their blaster modes to fire a laser at the criminals.

Mercury and Emerald got blasted by the laser, then prepared to fight again. Emerald swung the chains of her weapons around and managed to wrap them around Azalea, then pulled her forward to allow Mercury a free hit on the Cow Faunus. As Azalea turned visible again after the hit, Emerald stomped down on her with both feet. Before any more damage was dealt, Sunset grabbed her sword and swung it at Emerald, making her jump away and get off of Azalea. As the Cow Faunus got back on her feet, Sunset only said two words to her. "Fire Flower!" Immediately recognizing the name of the attack strategy, Azalea pulled out her Dust Batons and the two girls worked together to create a swarm of small flames that looked like fireflies. Emerald and Mercury watched the sparks of fire float around, not noticing when Sunset snapped her fingers until it was too late. When the snap was heard, the 'insects' detonated and more flames surged around Emerald and Mercury. As they took damage from the attack and were distracted by the heat, Azalea made her way behind the two and struck both of them with her batons after combining them into their staff form.

After taking a few hits from Azalea's weapon, Emerald used her own weapon's sickle form to try and attack the Cow Faunus while Mercury went to attack Sunset again. Azalea separated her weapon into twin batons and blocked Emerald's sickles as they glared at each other with red eyes, but Azalea's attention was soon caught by the giant Grimm dragon that flew toward Beacon Tower with a loud screech. As the Wyvern crashed into the tower, Azalea jumped back and avoided Emerald's attacks while Mercury managed to kick Sunset into Azalea. The two girls managed to stay on their feet and stood back-to-back as they looked at their opponents. Emerald swung her weapon's kusarigama form at the girls in order slash at the two from a distance, while Mercury fired several bullets of Wind Dust at them at the same time. As the blades and chains came at them, Azalea moved the two close to a wall and crossed her arms to have her vambraces touch. When they did, parts of the armor began to glow a cyan color and a barrier in the shape of a gladiolus flower formed to block the attacks. "Hard Light Dust barrier projectors," Azalea told Sunset. "Didn't use them in the tournament because I didn't need to."

"Cool," Sunset said before seeing some bystanders hiding behind some cars. Normally, Sunset would have gone to get them out of the way, but something didn't feel right about them to her. Ignoring them, she turned to see that Emerald and Mercury had vanished. "You two might have disappeared, but I know how to find you," Sunset muttered and closed her eyes to focus. After a deep breath, Sunset's eyes changed to the same color as Emerald and saw through the girl's own eyes, but also felt a headache. Sunset wasn't sure if it was from herself or Emerald using her own Semblance throughout the battle, but watched as the girl pointed her guns at Azalea's exposed side as she kept the barrier up. In Emerald's field of vision, Sunset also saw Mercury leaping into the air for another heel drop before she spoke to Azalea. "Switch," Sunset told Azalea and the Cow Faunus uncrossed her arms.

When the barrier fell down, Sunset was quick to deflect Emerald's bullets with her sword before launching a fireball at the green-haired girl in retaliation. As Emerald took a direct hit from the fireball, she cried out in pain and Mercury was revealed to Azalea. Catching his leg, Mercury only watched as Azalea punched him in the groin with extreme prejudice, sending him to the ground as he groaned in pain for a short bit. " _That's_ for what you said about Penny," Azalea said to the boy as he rolled on the ground. As all four caught their breath and shook off any pain, Mercury was the first to attack again. Fighting through the pain he still felt, he kicked at Azalea while Emerald shot at the horned girl's legs to restrict her movements. Thanks to their teamwork, Emerald and Mercury were able to knock Azalea into a car and her impact with the vehicle caused a large dent.

"I don't think that's gonna buff out," Mercury joked as he saw Azalea attempt to pry herself off the car. After he laughed, Sunset let out a battle cry as she sent streams of flames at the two villains, but they dodged the fire attacks easily and Emerald used her chains to toss the flame-haired girl around. After being released, Mercury used a bicycle kick to send Sunset flying toward Azalea.

Sunset and Azalea grunted as they stood back up and looked at each other. "These guys aren't letting up," Sunset remarked.

"Neither should we," Azalea said as she opened up her greave and placed her batons inside. Closing the modified piece of armor, Azalea watched as Emerald sent her chains toward the two again as Mercury came running for another flying kick. Catching the chains around her arm, Azalea's body began to spark and unleashed a surge of electricity that affected the metal equipment her opponents had. The electricity traveled down Emerald's chains and easily zapped Mercury thanks to his metal legs, causing the two to cry out in pain until Azalea's attack ended.

"My turn," Sunset said with a smirk as she used her own Semblance to access Pyrrha's own 'Polarity'. Manipulating the metal chains and Mercury's legs, Sunset was able to hold down the two and lift up several cars. Before Sunset could attack the helpless villains, she clutched her head in pain and turned toward the direction of Beacon Academy. As the pain in her head became more intense and she stopped using Pyrrha's Semblance, the cars and chains dropped to the ground. Before Emerald and Mercury could attack, a bright light shined from the ruined tower and made all four fighters stop. "ARGH! My head," Sunset shouted as she writhed in agony.

Azalea remembered the last time that Sunset reacted like this, it was from overusing her Semblance and trying to read Professor Ozpin's mind. Believing it to be another instance of that, Azalea unleashed another flash of light to blind Emerald and Mercury. While the two were distracted again, Azalea changed the Dust settings of her weapons to Wind and Gravity Dust. With them, Azalea used the last of her energy to fly away from the battlefield with an unconscious Sunset over her shoulder. When Emerald and Mercury's vision returned, they saw that the girls had left the area. "Come on, we need to see what that light was," Emerald said. "Cinder could be hurt."

"Yeah, so am I," Mercury replied as he groaned in pain. "Ah, that hurt more than Blondie's last attack on me before she broke my leg."

"I'd joke about you needing a third metal leg, but we need to go," Emerald told the boy before they left for Beacon.

* * *

Sunset groaned in pain as she began to wake up and soon saw she was lying in a bed with Azalea's dogs and her own pet gecko next to her. Scanning the room, she saw that it was Bianca Coloratura's penthouse and that her friends were all waiting for her to get up. "Sunset! You're awake," Azalea exclaimed as she hugged the girl, being careful to not squeeze or suffocate her. "I already told the others everything you said about Emerald and Mercury."

"I swear if I _ever_ see those two again, I'll rip off that asshole's metal legs and beat them to death with them after stabbing that green-haired bitch in the eyes," Rua shouted before Rebecca poked another pressure point on the former's neck to knock her out for a second.

"What happened? My head felt like it was being crushed by Nora's hammer before I saw that light," Sunset questioned.

"That light did... _something_ to that Wyvern after it destroyed the CCT tower," Cereza said as she looked out the window toward Beacon. Sunset looked in the same direction to see that the titanic Grimm was petrified on the destroyed tower, as motionless as a statue. "It's stuck like that, but it's bringing more Grimm to the school. We managed to get out of there in time, but..."

"Not everyone made it out okay," Layla added as she rubbed her arm and looked at her feet.

Sunset saw everyone's downcast expressions and was wondering what happened, but could tell that it wasn't good. "Who was it," Sunset asked, only to be answered by a familiar voice.

"Pyrrha Nikos," said Terracotta Gaia as he, Ivy, and all the other Huntsmen that Fragment Hunter knew entered the room. "She was killed in battle."

Sunset was shocked to hear the news, but the others spoke up more. "Ruby and Weiss went to find Jaune and Pyrrha since they weren't with the others," Silver explained. "Ruby went up to the tower to help Pyrrha after Jaune called them and..."

Sunset watched as Silver failed to find the words to explain what happened, but Ventus Gaia spoke up. "After seeing that light and helping the others evacuate, I went up to find out what happened and found these," the Falcon Faunus said as he revealed something behind his back. Sunset's eyes widened in shock as she saw Pyrrha's shield, the remains of her weapon, and the circlet she always wore.

"I've never seen Pyrrha take this off," Sunset muttered as she took the circlet and held it in her hands. The thin chains and emeralds dangled as she looked at the accessory, prompting Sunset to figure something out. Focusing her Semblance, she concentrated on the shards of Pyrrha's weapon and the pieces began to magnetize together. "I can still use her Semblance... That's a good thing, right?"

"Yeah, but she's still gone," Vixen reminded with a sad look on her face.

"First Penny, then Pyrrha," Azalea mumbled as she grabbed the pink ribbon on her arm. Slate immediately placed his hat on her head while the rest of her family, Bianca, and even the animals tried to comfort her.

"I wonder how the others are taking it," Vinyl questioned as she looked out the window and placed a hand on the glass.

"Some of them _are_ still in town. Let's go talk with them," Aurora Celeste replied. Everyone agreed and the group soon left the hotel.

* * *

In the city of Vale, soldiers from Atlas continued to help civilians after the disaster that everyone was now calling 'the Fall of Beacon'. When Fragment Hunter arrived with Pinkie, Bianca, and all their Huntsmen allies, they encountered Team GLOW speaking to General Ironwood before he walked away. Terracotta went to speak with the general while the teenagers went to speak with their friends from Atlas. "Hey, guys. How's everything been since last night," Sunset asked.

"Not so good," Garnet Pepper said. "With Beacon Tower damaged like it is, communication with the other Kingdoms has been crippled. Not only that, but we'll be shipping back to Atlas soon."

"General Ironwood is worried about all of the troops we lost during that night, so he wants to make sure we get home safely," Raduga White added.

"I think that would be for the best," Bianca agreed. "I'm thinking of going home to Mirabelle after everything that happened."

"I'm sure your family will be happy to see you're okay," Azalea said to her childhood friend.

"Did you guys here about Pyrrha," Rua asked as she looked at the team from Atlas.

The four nodded with sad expressions showing on their faces. "She was a Huntress, alright," Oren Maxwell replied. "She kept fighting when everything seemed bleak. Same with"

"Yeah," Rebecca agreed sadly.

"We'd stay and talk more, but we have to check on the others. Have any of you seen Team PRDT around," Celadon asked.

"Last I saw them, they were helping the medics," Lucy Diamond answered as she gave the others directions. "Percival seemed like he was talking to his team about something, though."

"I think I know what it is," Sunset remarked. "Thanks for everything and I hope that we can see each other soon."

"All depends on what our headmaster wants us to do. Good luck with choosing your path," Maxwell stated and all four students from Atlas saluted their friends from Vale. Fragment Hunter saluted back and soon went off to find Team PRDT.

* * *

When they arrived at their next stop, the teenagers noticed that Percival Ivory was speaking with his teammates about something. "Are you sure that you want to do this," Twilight Roseus asked as she adjusted her glasses.

"You girls all know how important this is to me," Percival told his team. "If they can help me find her, then I'm going to go. I'll be back when I can."

"You're our leader. I don't think that this is the best idea, especially after everything that happened," Jennifer Dawn remarked. "At least, let us come with you."

Ebony Rain shook her head as she placed a hand on her blonde teammate's shoulder. "This is something he needs to do for himself," Ebony said. "We need to respect his choices."

"What are you guys talking about," Silver asked as he spoke up for the members of Fragment Hunter.

The members of Team PRDT greeted the teenagers before Twilight gave an answer. "Percival says he's going to leave us for a while so that he can search for his mother. Apparently, Azalea's father knows her and can help look for her," she stated. "But given the CCT's condition, we wouldn't be able to talk with each other until Percival returns to Vacuo."

"Is that _really_ what you want to do," Layla asked as she remembered the talk Team PRDT and Team FCSA had after their missions at Port Mako.

Percival nodded as he gave his answer to the teenagers. "Yeah. This has been bugging me for nearly 18 years, so I want to at least meet her and tell her how I've been doing," he said.

"When would you leave," Azalea asked.

"Hopefully as soon as possible," Terracotta voiced as he, Ventus, and Ivy approached the group. "We could find information about Orchid's whereabouts as we head for Mirabelle to help Lapis."

"Why are we going there," Sunset questioned.

"An old friend of mine is a doctor and can help us," Ivy explained.

"She's one of the best doctors I've ever met," Ventus added.

Hearing the news, Lapis was happy to learn she would have her vision restored after Sable Eisenbrand damaged her eyes during the Battle of Beacon. "We'll leave after you've checked up on everyone," Terracotta told the members of Fragment Hunter.

"We still have a few more stops if that's the case," Celadon remarked as she remembered more of what happened after the Wyvern was frozen. "We should see how Ruby and Yang are doing."

* * *

The members of Fragment Hunter soon reached the docks and waited for their boat to the island of Patch, where Ruby and Yang lived with their father. Terracotta had taken Azalea there a few times because he knew Taiyang back from their years as students at Beacon. As the adults went to charter a boat, the teenagers all waited around and talked. "What happened to Smoke Shadow and his gang while I was out," Sunset asked the others.

"I don't think they left Vale yet," Vixen responded.

"Where could they have gone," Silver questioned before everyone heard a trio of voices that were too familiar to them.

"YOU! Everything that happened during the Vytal Festival was all your fault," Aoi Lobelia shouted as Mistral's Team JADE from Haven Academy marched up to the members of Fragment Hunter.

"You're a part of the White Fang! That tattoo on your arm proves it," Jet Pitch said as he pointed to Silver, remembering the battle against Percival Ivory during the tournament.

"It wasn't enough that you beat us in the first round, but those terrorists had to attack us," Envy Sinn stated. "You just have to prove that you're better than us, Dairy Cow!"

Duke Cobalt just groaned in annoyance as he watched his team yell at the Faunus members of Fragment Hunter, even when they weren't involved with the White Fang itself. The three teams only listened to the bullies rant about what they thought of Azalea, Silver, and Vixen. "Will you three just shut up," Slate said to the antagonistic trio as he stepped in front of Azalea. "Why are you even bothering us?"

"Because you three are the closest to the White Fang here," Aoi said as she prepared to use her Laser Vision Semblance on the group.

"Aoi, stop it," Duke said as he tried to defuse the situation.

"Stay out of this, Cobalt," Envy said as she drew her sword. "This is between us and those dumb animals."

Before anyone made the first move, Azalea approached the three bullies with a cold stare in her eyes. Envy was about to attack when the Cow Faunus spoke up. "You three are pathetic. You've been picking on me and so many others for years. It's... sad," Azalea told the trio. "You could do better, but here you are trying to start a fight because you feel like you need _some_ sort of victory after this whole thing. Sunset told me what she found out about you. The White Fang killed your family, Jet. They did the same for Silver and he fought the guy who was responsible at the cost of Lapis getting blinded by him," she said to the black-haired boy. Jet's body language told her that he was feeling ashamed about assuming Silver was still with the White Fang. "Aoi, you're just a girl who never learned to find the positive in the Faunus. You only heard what others said and agreed with them like a sheep following a flock. Have you ever taken the time to talk to a regular Faunus and know what they're like? I don't think you have," she said to Aoi, who stopped attempting to use her Semblance as she listened. "And Envy, you've been stewing in your own negative emotions toward me for years because I 'had everything you don't'. You could have just met my family and they would have given you a real home on the farm. Instead, you just tried to take away what peace I had by tormenting me all the time."

"I... I w- Uh..." Envy was at a loss for words as she heard Azalea talk to her, but listened as the horned girl continued to speak.

"All three of you may have had different lives to me, but you're not the only ones that fought that night. One of my friends is blind now, several have been taken away or ran off, and two of them are now dead. I don't know what have planned after everything that happened, but I know what _I'm_ going to do. So just leave me and my friends alone," Azalea told her former bullies before marching forward, prompting the three to step out of her way. Unknown to everyone, Terracotta listened to the whole speech with Ivy and Ventus, all three of them smiling with pride as Azalea easily took down her worst enemies without even raising a fist or her voice.

* * *

After the confrontation with Team JADE, Fragment Hunter took their boat to the island of Patch and soon made their way to a log cabin in a forest. "Here we are. Taiyang Xiao Long's house," Terracotta told the group. "It's been a while since you've been here, Princess," he said to Azalea.

"Yeah... It has," Azalea sadly replied as she remembered what Yang Xiao Long had been through.

Terracotta soon knocked on the door and waited for a man with blond hair to open it. "Terracotta. Good to see you, buddy," Taiyang greeted as he saw his old classmate. "Come on in, everyone." As everyone came inside the house, everyone heard a small bark and saw a corgi at their feet. "Calm down, Zwei. They're just visiting for a bit," Taiyang said to the dog.

Azalea and Rua were the first to pet the corgi until they heard Ivy speak to Taiyang. "So, how are your girls after that night?"

Taiyang avoided eye contact until he found the right way to talk about how Ruby and Yang were doing. "Ruby just needs more rest, especially after getting to the top of the tower to see what was happening. But Yang... she isn't taking everything well," he told the elder Cow Faunus.

"Losing something important will do that to you," Lapis sadly said as she was guided over to the couch to lie down on. As she was on her back, Zwei approached the girl and licked at her hand in order to try cheering her up. Lapis gave a small smile and scratched Zwei's head in response.

"Think she'll talk with us," Vinyl asked as she removed her sunglasses to talk with Taiyang.

Taiyang hesitated a bit before he gave an answer, but spoke to the group with an honest answer. "I don't think she'll be willing to say a lot, but you're welcome to try," he said. "She's in the spare bedroom. She wanted some space away from Ruby after everything."

"I'll talk to her," Azalea said as she went up the stairs and found Yang looked out the window with an emotionless expression. "Hi, Yang."

The blonde looked over at Azalea and acknowledged the Faunus' presence. "Hey, Azalea," Yang greeted half-heartedly.

"We know about everything that happened. Well... not everything," Azalea said as she looked at what was left of Yang's right arm. "I know you probably don't want to talk about it." Yang looked away and slightly nodded to answer Azalea. "You aren't the only one that lost something, Yang. Lapis was blinded and we're taking her a doctor my family knows. We'll be doing what we can to help her, just like what your dad would do for you."

"I know he would," Yang responded.

"You're strong. You'll get through this with time. I did with the bullies that made me feel weak," Azalea told Yang. The blonde started to tear up at what Azalea said, but didn't respond. "Just know that even if nobody's by your side at the moment, there are still people that love you and care about how you're doing." Azalea saw that even with Yang being emotionally drained from everything that has happened, her body language showed that she was listening to the Faunus. "I'll leave you alone now. Bye, Yang." When Azalea left, Yang let the tears forming in her eyes fall down her face and onto her bedsheets.

Walking down the stairs, the others saw that Azalea looked upset after her talk with Yang. "That bad," Celadon asked.

"After everything that happened, it'll take a while for her to be back to her normal self," Azalea replied. "It's soul-crushing to see Yang like this."

"I know what you mean. After losing Summer, I was in the same boat as Yang," Taiyang told the others as he recalled Ruby's deceased mother. "These sorts of things don't just heal over after a few days. It takes time to get through it and the efforts of others helping you."

"We'd love to stay and help, but we have our own problems to handle," Cereza said as she looked at Rua helping Lapis avoid any obstacles in her way.

"Terracotta told me," Taiyang replied. "Good luck with your trip."

"Thanks, Tai," Terracotta said. "We'll keep in touch the old-fashioned way."

"With the CCT down, that's for the best," Taiyang noted.

As the group said farewell to Ruby and Yang's father, Sunset noticed Qrow Branwen walking up to the house. As the group passed him, Sunset bumped into the male and felt something with her Semblance kicking in. " _What was that,_ " Sunset thought to herself as she was confused by what she sensed from Qrow. Ignoring it for the moment, she went back to the boat with the others while she started humming a song that popped into her head.

* * *

When Fragment Hunter reached Vale again, they only had one more thing to do as they managed to find who they were looking for. Approaching Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, and Lie Ren, the members of Fragment Hunter all saw the three were just as upset as they were after learning that Pyrrha died. "Hey, guys," Layla greeted as the teenagers gathered together.

"Hey," Jaune greeted as he saw the members of Fragment Hunter. "What are you guys doing?"

"We came to find you," Sunset said. "How are the three of you after everything?"

"Not great," Nora answered sadly.

"None of us are after that night," Rua replied. "I think Ruby took it the worse since she saw a number of people die in front of her. A 15-year old girl shouldn't see that in her first year of Beacon." As Rua said that, tears welled up in her eyes and threatened to fall to the ground.

"There are more people that died in the battle that night than just Pyrrha," Ren stated. "Everyone was affected by this. Some more than others," he added as he looked at Jaune.

Wondering what Ren was implying when he looked at Jaune, Sunset used her Semblance to investigate the boy's memories. After seeing Pyrrha and Ozpin going into a sort of underground vault where the young woman she saw in Emerald's memories was hooked up to some strange machinery, Sunset watched as Cinder appeared and managed to kill the woman with an arrow. After what she could only describe as 'magic' enter Cinder, Ozpin instructed the students to escape while he fought the newly empowered woman. When Jaune and Pyrrha got outside of Beacon Tower, Pyrrha was determined to try and stop Cinder. Jaune's pleas to get Pyrrha to stay were silenced when she gave him a long kiss on the lips. _"Okay, I wasn't expecting that,"_ Sunset thought to herself as she watched Jaune return the kiss and the two enjoyed it. The passion soon ended as Pyrrha used her Semblance on Jaune's armor to push him into a locker with an apology. As Jaune continued to plead with Pyrrha to not endanger herself, the scene soon cut to him calling Weiss and panicking about Pyrrha risking her life. Sunset could only watch the scene before her as Jaune's emotions surged, affecting her as well. Exiting Jaune's mind, Sunset immediately hugged him and tears fell from her eyes. "I'm so sorry," Sunset told him as she literally knew what he felt.

Jaune hugged Sunset back as he started to cry over losing Pyrrha. The other members of Fragment Hunter gave sympathetic looks as they knew Sunset was the only one of them who was able to understand Jaune's pain the best. After the hug between Jaune and Sunset ended, Jaune dried his face before speaking to everyone. "I think I needed that," he said.

"Here. You might want these," Rua said as she gave Jaune, Ren, and Nora the remains of Pyrrha's belongings that Ventus gathered from the girl's final battleground.

"What are we even going to do now that we can't stay at Beacon," Nora asked as she watched Jaune take the items.

"Beacon was only the start," Rebecca said. "It'll be up to us to figure out the rest of our journey."

"She's right," Vinyl said. "The Fall of Beacon was the end of the beginning for us. With everything that happened that night, we'll need to take the next step. For now, we're going to get Lapis the help she needs to see again. You guys should talk with Ruby at her home at Patch. She was the last one to see Pyrrha, so maybe you guys can figure out your next step together."

The remains of Team JNPR looked at each other and agreed to do just that before speaking to Fragment Hunter again. "We wish you the best endeavors on your travels," Ren told the group. "Take care."

"I hope we see each other soon," Nora said.

"Maybe you guys can all stop at Mirabelle some time," Azalea suggested. "It would be good to catch up there before doing anything else important."

"Sounds like a good idea if we're traveling," Jaune said. "Goodbye, everyone."

"Don't say goodbye," Slate told Jaune and the others. "My grandparents always told me and my sister that if you don't say goodbye, you're never really gone. You just aren't here right now. And considering everything with Pyrrha, Penny, and all the others, I think it helps keep them in your thoughts."

"They sound really nice and smart," Azalea said to Slate with a smile on her face as she looked at her boyfriend. Slate smiled back and her and held her close as he adjusted his hat.

"Well, I guess we'll see each other later," Silver remarked. "Much later." Everyone agreed that they would meet again before they headed on their separate ways.

* * *

The members of Fragment Hunter were all waiting at a clearing near the outskirts of Vale to meet up with who was joining them on their trip east. Team SLVR, Team SAFR, and Team FCSA all checked through their bags and equipment when Gin Aurum met up with the group and used his Semblance to give everyone's items back. "I'm glad that Mom's letting you help your friends, Vi," Gin said as he spoke to his little sister. "Then again, I'm going with you, so that might be putting her at ease."

"Speaking of sisters, where's mine," Slate wondered as he looked around the area. "Pinkamena Momo Quartz, you better get your butt over her now," the gunslinger called out. Soon, his pink-haired sister popped out of a bush with Sunset's pet gecko on her head. "What were you doing in there," Slate questioned as he picked a few leaves out of the girl's hair.

"I was picking berries," Pinkie said as she showed a small handful of berries to the others.

"Those things better not be poisonous," Slate warned.

"Like it'll be worse than eating bugs back in Vacuo," Pinkie remarked as she tossed a few berries into her mouth and ate them.

Hearing that Pinkie and Slate used to eat bugs back in Vacuo, Celadon gagged at the thought. "Those berries are fine," Azalea said as she grabbed some from Pinkie and enjoyed them for herself. "You find them around all kinds of forests in Remnant."

Soon, the sound of several dogs barking was heard and the group all turned to see Dante, Diana, and Drei coming their way with Bianca Coloratura following them. As the four approached, Silver smiled as he saw the Dove Faunus until he noticed Dante running straight for him. "Why," Silver meekly asked as the Great Dane-Wolfhound mix knocked him to the ground. The Wolf Faunus only shouted out muffled cries for help while most of Fragment Hunter laughed. After getting Dante off of him, Silver turned to Azalea with a glare. "I think your dog has it out for me," Silver told the horned girl with an annoyed tone of voice. Bianca and Azalea only snickered at Silver's bad luck with Dante while they helped him onto his feet.

"I think that Dante likes you if he keeps doing that," Ivy remarked as she walked up to the group with Terracotta and Ventus by her sides. Joining them was Percival Ivory as he carried a bag of supplies with him for the trip. "I haven't seen Orchid in years. I wonder how she's doing," Ivy said as she watched Percival put his back down.

"Hopefully we'll find out," Terracotta replied.

"Anybody else we're missing," Ventus questioned as he scanned the area. "Aurora and Nocturne said that they still have to keep an eye on Garrison Academy, so we won't be able to see them for a while."

Counting up the teenagers, adults, and animals, Sunset answered the Falcon Faunus. "We're just waiting on our ride. And they owe us one for what Ivy did during the Fall of Beacon," the flame-haired girl said as she held a calling card with a familiar emblem on the back. Soon, the group heard an approaching engine and looked up to see an airship that was originally used to take passengers to Amity Colosseum. "Looks like they're here," Sunset remarked as she playfully rolled her eyes.

As the airship landed, it opened and Smoke Shadow twirled his cane before tapping it on the ground. "Your transportation has arrived," the Raccoon Faunus greeted.

"Probably stolen," Sunset said as she guessed where the thief obtained the airship.

"Well, it's not like any of you can easily take more than 20 people outside of Vale with everything that happened earlier," Smoke responded with a smirk as he looked Sunset in the eyes.

"I don't think any of you four could have made it through that night without us helping you," Sunset retorted.

"JUST KISS ALREADY," Lapis shouted, surprising everyone. "Geez, I can tell you two have a thing for each other even when all I see is just one big blur," the blue-haired girl muttered.

After getting past the awkward moment, Smoke guided Sunset and everyone else onto the airship. As everyone took their seats and put their bags away, the Raccoon Faunus placed a finger on the earpiece he had. "Kun, get us in the air," he instructed.

"You got it, pal," Kun Agate responded as the airship began to take off. When the ship was in the sky, Kun spoke to Smoke again. "We might not make it all the way to Anima in one go, but we can at least stop at Notremodo. Maybe see the sights and enjoy the food."

"You always have food on your mind, big guy," Smoke chuckled. "Still, Notremodo would be a good stop for all of us."

"I have to agree," Cereza said to the Raccoon Faunus. "I need to check in with my father and show him I'm alright."

"Plus, we'll be able to see your home first," Azalea added.

Cereza smiled and gave a little laugh as she looked at her teammate. "We'll need to get there first. It'll take us a little while from Vale," Cereza said before she looked at Sunset. " _I'm curious. Why haven't we told anybody about what you found out from Emerald's memories_ ," Cereza mentally asked Sunset.

" _With everything Team RWBY and Team JNPR went through, I think it would have been better for them to deal with what they needed at the moment. Besides, I think Ruby and her uncle might have a talk about what she saw_ ," Sunset told the members of Fragment Hunter using her Semblance's telepathic link and hinted at Qrow's involvement with Cinder, Emerald, and Mercury. "I think that night showed us all something important," Sunset said aloud to everyone as her pet gecko, Phoenix climbed onto her shoulder. "We need to keep moving forward and continue fighting. There's no telling what else is out there besides the ones responsible for Beacon falling."

* * *

At a village in Sanus, members of the White Fang were scattered all across the ground as a lone man fought against them. "No! Please," cried out one soldier before they screamed for their life. Blood splattered across the dirt near a pair of broken sunglasses while the Faunus fell to the ground with their uniform stained red.

"You don't scare me, human," one Faunus said before they charged at the man, but was sent flying back into a building and knocked out cold.

As more and more soldiers were defeated, only one remaining Faunus wearing a Grimm Mask that completely covered their face stood. The extremist stood shaking in their boots as the man approached him, grabbed him by the neck, and lifted him about a foot off the ground. The Faunus' mask was soon removed and his expression showed that he was terrified of the man he was being held up by. The unknown man inspected the mask before turning his attention to the petrified Faunus and performed a powerful chokeslam that ended the 'battle'.

When the last terrorist was defeated, several bystanders watched as the man placed the mask on his face and began to walk away from the village. One mother and child held onto each other as the male passed by them without uttering a single sound. Their eyes were wide as they read what was written on the back of the male's jacket. Above a design of a machete going through the bottom of a mask was the word 'Carnage' in a sinister shade of crimson, almost the same as blood.

* * *

 **Wow... I can't believe I've actually done it. I've written a story that has 50 chapters. I'm actually proud of myself for doing this. And thank you, everyone. Thank you for sticking through and reading this story for yourselves. It means a lot that you continued to read about my Original Characters and their adventures during the canonical story of RWBY. Fragment Hunter's journey won't be stopping here, though. They have plenty to do as they continue on as warriors and heroes.**

 **Now then, for the battle against Emerald and Mercury, I believe that the most appropriate music to play is "I'm The One" during the first half of the fight. After Sunset exits Emerald's memories and she goes on the counterattack with Azalea, the next song that you should listen to is "Don't Lose Your Mind" from Kamen Rider Drive. I checked the translated lyrics out and I thought it was very appropriate enough for Sunset as a battle theme.**

 **As for why Sunset passed out before her final move, my original plan was that she saw through Ruby's eyes and watched Pyrrha die at the same time. Because of Sunset's Semblance, it would have caused another "Silver Eye surge" or something in order to handle any Grimm nearby. But we didn't really know much about Silver Eyed Warriors when I was figuring this out. When we did get the info, I thought that the emotions needed to use the powers would be strong enough for Sunset to sense from quite a distance. After all, the light that shines from Ruby and Maria using their abilities during Volume 6 covered a large area. So, I decided to have Sunset feel Ruby's emotions at the time and cause her to react the same way she did with when she tried reading Ozpin's unique mind. Once again, she'll write it off as overusing her Semblance, which she** _ **did**_ **.**

 **The final scene was something I wanted to show in order to show off more of the threats my characters will battle since they won't be completely involved in the Salem storyline. Original characters deserve original threats and the character who was slaughtering members of the White Fang is definitely somebody I want to show more of later because I've got plans for him.**

 **With Fragment Hunter dealing with what they had to in Vale, they're ready to head off for their next destination with a number of friends by their side. With Cereza's hometown of Notremodo as their goal at the moment, our heroes are now off. How will our heroes do outside of Vale? Can they prove themselves as Huntsmen and Huntresses with so little training from Beacon? Just who or what will they encounter on their journey? Find out next time on "Sideline: Another Story".**

 **WaterDragonMaverick, signing out!**


End file.
